


RWBY: The AU Theater

by regachoisiah, wordwarrior (regachoisiah)



Category: RWBY
Genre: AU, Adaptation, Alternate Reality, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Different Powers, Alternate Universe - Fusion, Alternate Universe - Historical, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Anthology, Au theater, Based on a Tumblr Post, Historical Reenactment, Movie Night, Multi, Multiverse, RWBY au, RWBY reenacts movies and shows, Same Performer in Different Roles
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-01
Updated: 2021-02-22
Packaged: 2021-03-10 00:00:56
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 40
Words: 232,772
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27504976
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/regachoisiah/pseuds/regachoisiah, https://archiveofourown.org/users/regachoisiah/pseuds/wordwarrior
Summary: The multiverse is a vast network of realities, all floating independently of one another. In the world of "RWBY", they don't even realize that multiple versions of their world exists. And in this fic, we will explore those infinite realities, to see how the lives of each character could've turned out.AKA Watch as the cast of RWBY re-enacts scenes from famous movies and TV showNOW PLAYING:"Grimmors": Sun and Neptune are about to skip town when all of a sudden, they stumble upon a series of mysterious deaths and Blake, who has been studying unnatural readings below the ground. With the help of doomsday preppers Ruby and Weiss, the group fights for survival against giant, worm-like Grimm that are hungry for flesh. (based on: Tremors)"Branded-Face": Adam Taurus, a newly arrived refugee/political enemy from Atlas, stakes a claim on the illegal Dust trade. Viciously murdering anyone who stands in his way, Adam eventually becomes the biggest illegal Dust-lord in the kingdom, controlling nearly all the illegal Dust that comes through Vale. But increased pressure from the police, wars with Vacuan Dust cartels and his own paranoia serve to fuel the flames of his eventual downfall. (based on: Scarface)
Relationships: Blake Belladonna/Adam Taurus, Blake Belladonna/Sun Wukong, Blake Belladonna/Yang Xiao Long, Emerald Sustrai/Yang Xiao Long, Ghira Belladonna/Kali Belladonna, Glynda Goodwitch/James Ironwood, Ilia Amitola/Blake Belladonna, Jaune Arc/Pyrrha Nikos, Jaune Arc/Ruby Rose, Jaune Arc/Velvet Scarlatina, Jaune Arc/Weiss Schnee, Lie Ren/Nora Valkyrie, Lie Ren/Pyrrha Nikos, Mercury Black/Emerald Sustrai, Neopolitan/Roman Torchwick, Neptune Vasilias/Yang Xiao Long, Oscar Pine/Ruby Rose, Qrow Branwen/Ozpin, Qrow Branwen/Summer Rose, Qrow Branwen/Winter Schnee, Raven Branwen/Taiyang Xiao Long, Ruby Rose/Weiss Schnee, Summer Rose/Taiyang Xiao Long, Weiss Schnee/Neptune Vasilias, Weiss Schnee/Sun Wukong, Weiss Schnee/Yang Xiao Long, note: there is no main ship for this fic it will change every chapter, ships featured so far
Comments: 54
Kudos: 39





	1. POLL (REDO): For the next full-length, movie-to-RWBY adaptation (NON-STORY)

**Author's Note:**

> (I'm new to this fandom and I was inspired to make this from all the "RWBY reacts to multiverse" fanfiction I've read. They're so damn entertaining for some reason)
> 
> (Disclaimer: Not Jaune-centric. One of the things I'm not a fan of when it comes to these RWBY multiverse fics is that 90% of them are Jaune-centric. He'll still be in the story, he just won't be the main character every time)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone, just a quick poll. Comment below which movie you'd like to see next!

Alright, so the reason why I'm redoing the first poll is because, after working on "Grimms", I realized that I didn't want to do another sci-fi space opera so soon. It's not really burnout, it's more along the lines of me wanting to do something different, expand my horizons. Based on the votes, "CRMEN of the Galaxy" was going to be the next movie adaptation, but I just don't have it in me to do another space movie. I'll eventually get to "CRMEN of the Galaxy" since I really do like GOTG, but for now, I'll have to put it on the backburner.

I'll also have to shelve the runner-up pick, "The Gynoid". I love "The Terminator"...but I also didn't want to do another James Cameron movie where Summer Rose and Qrow Branwen are the main characters. 

So, here's a list of movies I'm open to working on once I'm finished with "Grimms". Just like the initial poll, all you have to do is comment below which of the following choices you'd like to see next.

Also, feel free to suggest some ideas you'd like to see for future chapters, I'm all ears. 

(EDIT, 1/24/21: I finished "Grimms"! Finally! So, the movie list has been updated) 

(EDIT, 1/4/21: Moving this up to chapter 1 since I just realized that finding the poll might be a bit tedious, especially since we're up to thirty chapters now)

* * *

  1. **"Inglourious White Fang"**
    1. Plot: It's Great War II. Under the command of the Führer Jacques Schnee, Atlas is close to conquering all of Remnant. In the midst of this world conquest, the Atlesian forces are also attempting to wipe out the entire faunus race, who they deem as "inferior" and "subhuman". In this violent tale of revenge, we follow two groups of faunus who will do whatever it takes to avenge their people. On one side is Blake Belladonna, who lost her entire family to the cruel Atlesian Colonel James Ironwood. On the other side is the "White Fang", a group of faunus soldiers led by Lieutenant Yang Xiao Long and Staff Sergeant Adam "The Cruel Bull" Taurus. Their mission; kill Atlesians. 
    2. Based on: Inglourious Basterds (2009) 
  2. **"Game Over"**
    1. Plot: Jaune Arc and Mercury Black wake up in a dilapidated restroom, chained to opposite sides of the room. In the middle of the room is a dead body; there's a tape recorder in one hand of the dead body and a revolver in the other. They soon learn that they're part of a bigger plan. Mercury must fight to survive. Jaune, however, must kill Mercury within 24 hours. If he doesn't...Pyrrha and their daughter will die...
    2. Based on: Saw (2004) 
  3. **"Raiders of the Lost Relic"**
    1. Plot: World-famous archaeologist/college professor/adventurer Taiyang Xiao Long goes on a worldwide hunt for a mysterious artifact known as "The Relic of the Brothers". Unlike his previous adventures, this one could have dire consequences if the artifact were to fall into the wrong hands. This is because standing in his way are the armies of Atlas, who wish to use the powers of the artifact against their enemies and achieve world domination. Luckily (or unluckily) for him, he has a partner who has the key to finding the Relic; his feisty ex-girlfriend Raven Branwen, who may or may not still hate him.
    2. Based on: Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) 
  4. **"Jaune Arc, the Huntsman Who Shagged Me"**
    1. Plot: Valean super-huntsman Jaune Arc must return to 1969, as arch-nemesis Dr. Arthur "Evil" Watts has ventured back to that year and successfully stolen Jaune's aura (also known as his "mojo") and set up a powerful laser and aimed it at Remnant. With the help of gorgeous huntress Yang Xiao Long, the newly single Jaune must now not only contend with Dr. Watts, but also Watt's vicious, pint-size attack-clone, Mini-Me.
    2. Based on: Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me (1999)
  5. **"Above 50 Miles"**
    1. Plot: Valean police officer Qrow Branwen angers retired bomb squad member Hazel Rainart by foiling his attempt at taking hostages. In revenge, Hazel arms a bus with a bomb that will explode if it drops below 50 miles per hour. With the help of spunky passenger Winter Schnee, Qrow and his partner Clover Ebi try to save the people on the bus before the bomb goes off, while also trying to figure out how Hazel is monitoring them.
    2. Based on: Speed (1994) 
  6. **"The Stone"**
    1. Plot: Atlesian chemical warfare expert Oscar Pine is sent on an urgent mission with a former Mistralian spy, Maria Calavera, to stop General James Ironwood from launching chemical weapons on Solitas Island into Mantle. General Ironwood demands $100 million in war reparations to be paid to the families of slain servicemen who died on covert operations. After their Ace Ops team is wiped out, Oscar and Maria deal with the soldiers on their own.
    2. Based on: The Rock (1996) 
  7. **"The Slime"**
    1. Plot: In a tiny Valean town, academy students Lie Ren, Nora Valkyrie and Jaune Arc discover a strange, gelatinous substance that melts the flesh of any living creatures in its path. The deadly substance gets into the town's sewer system, where it begins growing uncontrollably, occasionally emerging to feast on unsuspecting townspeople. A military clean-up crew is sent to eliminate the menace, but it may end up doing more harm than good.
    2. Based on: The Blob (1988) 
  8. **"Tundra Thunder"**
    1. Plot: While shooting a war film, film director Ozpin attempts to liven up proceedings by dropping the principle actors into the middle of a real jungle, claiming he is going to capture their performance with hidden cameras. The hapless group, including washed-up action star Taiyang Xiao Long, rookie actress Summer Rose, rapper Marrow Amin, drug-addled comedy star Qrow Branwen, and intense method actress Raven Branwen, are completely unaware when a series of unfortunate events leads them into the middle of a real war zone.
    2. Based on: Tropic Thunder (2008) 
  9. **"A Tale of Two Rats"**
    1. Plot: Valean cop Jaune Arc goes undercover to infiltrate the organization of gangland chief Roman Torchwick. As Jaune gains the mobster's trust, a career criminal named Mercury Black infiltrates the police department and reports on its activities to his syndicate bosses. When both organizations learn they have a mole in their midst, Jaune and Mercury must figure out each other's identities to save their own lives.
    2. Based on: The Departed (2006)
  10. **"Payback"**
    1. Plot: After defeating international terrorist Raven Branwen, Ghira Belladonna, Sun Wukong, and the rest of the crew have separated to return to more normal lives. However, Qrow Branwen, Raven's twin brother, is thirsty for revenge. A slick government agent offers to help Ghira and company take care of Branwen in exchange for their help in rescuing Emerald Sustrai, a kidnapped computer hacker who has developed a powerful surveillance program.
    2. Based on: Furious 7 (2015) 
  11. **"The Woman Who Cried Accident"**
    1. Plot: Top Valean cop Winter Schnee is good. Too good. And to stop the rest of her team looking bad, she is reassigned to the quiet island town of Patch. She is paired with Nora Valkyrie, who endlessly questions her on the action lifestyle. Everything seems quiet for Winter, until two actors are found decapitated. It is called an accident, but Winter isn't going to accept that, especially when more and more people turn up dead. Winter and Nora clash with everyone, whilst trying to uncover the truth behind the mystery of the apparent "accidents".
    2. Based on: Hot Fuzz (2007)
    3. NOTE: Continuation of "Still a Bit Stiff"
  12. **"Jaune of the Dead"**
    1. Plot: Jaune Arc is a 30-something loser with a dull, easy existence. When he's not working at the electronics store, he lives with his slovenly best friend, Neptune Vasilias, in a small flat on the outskirts of London. The only unpredictable element in his life is his girlfriend, Weiss Schnee, who wishes desperately for Jaune to grow up and be a man. When the town is inexplicably overrun with zombies, Jaune must rise to the occasion and protect both Weiss and his sister, Saphron Arc. 
    2. Based on: Shaun of the Dead (2004)
  13. **"Halfway Crook"**
    1. Plot: The setting is Kuo Kuona. The city is divided by 8 Mile, a road that splits the town in half along human-faunus lines. A young human rapper, Lie "B-Rabbit" Ren summons strength within himself to cross over these arbitrary boundaries to fulfill his dream of success in hip hop. With his pal Blake "Future" Belladonna and the three one third in place, all he has to do is not choke.
    2. Based on: 8 Mile (2002) 
  14. **"The Ren Identity"**
    1. Plot: The story of a man apparently named "Lie Ren" who was salvaged, near death, from the ocean by a Mistralian fishing boat. When he recuperates, Ren suffers from total amnesia, without identity or background...except for a range of extraordinary talents in fighting, linguistic skills and self-defense that speak of a dangerous past. He sets out on a desperate search-assisted by the initially rebellious Yang Xiao Long - to discover who he really is, and why he's being lethally pursued by assassins.
    2. Based on: The Bourne Identity (2002)
  15. **"Dude, I Think My Hand's Possessed"**
    1. Plot: When slacker teen Jaune Arc has his right hand possessed by a demonic force, he finds that his life gets a lot more interesting. While Jaune himself is an amiable guy, his hand proves to be an appendage of death, killing his two best buddies, Sun Wukong and Neptune Vasilias, who return to life as wisecracking zombies. In addition to murdering those closest to him, Jaune's evil hand significantly hinders his chances with lovely neighbor Neopolitan.
    2. Based on: Idle Hands (1999) 
  16. **"Weisses"**
    1. Plot: Emerald Sustrai is part of the most popular clique at Beacon Academy, but she disapproves of the other girls' cruel behavior. When Emerald and her new boyfriend, Mercury Black, confront clique leader Weiss Rose and accidentally poison her, they make it appear a suicide. Soon, Emerald realizes that Mercury is intentionally killing students he does not like. She races to stop Mercury while also clashing with the clique's new leader, Weiss Schnee.
    2. Based on: Heathers (1989) 
    3. Side note: To keep with the movie's naming scheme, our "Heathers" are Weiss Schnee (Heather Duke), Weiss Rose aka Ruby Rose (Heather Chandler), and Weiss Xiao Long aka Yang Xiao Long (Heather McNamara) 




	2. DISCLAIMER (NON-STORY)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just a quick author's note

Regarding my author's note on chapter 1, I've decided that I don't have it in me to make an additional "RWBY characters reaction" fic. It already takes a lot of work to write these stories out and because of that, I'll stick to the re-enactments. It's just simply too much work to write out the entire chapter, then having to go back and add in the reactions from the RWBY cast. Plus, there's also the added burden of adding an explanation as to how they're viewing the multiverse and to turn that explanation into a running subplot.

Then there's the burden of making sure the "reaction" side of the story stays true to the RWBY-lore and is not just cheap reactions, like Ruby going, "Wow, I like the weapons" or Qrow going, "Man, this makes me want to drink beer". Maybe that's my perfectionist side coming out but if I were to do the reaction fic, I'd want it to feel true to the show and that you truly believe that it's the character reacting. Basically, I don't want to write shallow representations of the cast, and that would take a lot of work and time to pull off. 

It's like doing the work of two stories for one story. So yeah, I'm not doing the reaction fic. Which isn't too bad to be honest, considering how many RWBY reaction fics there are on the web. 

That being said...

If anyone would like to use these chapters for a reaction fic, feel free to do so. I only ask that you let me know ahead of time if you're going to be using any of my chapters. 


	3. 3AM (part 1 of 2)

_"Ready?"_

_"Okay!"_

_As Madeline Ironwood strum her first few chords on her father's guitar, you could almost see the pride radiating from James Ironwood's eyes. She had no song in mind, just a few chords that sounded pretty when strung together. James, finding her adorable in her eagerness to play, kissed her on the back of her head._

_Atta girl, he thought to himself. We'll make a rockstar out of you in no time._

**As James Ironwood sat on his bed by himself, he couldn't help but play those same notes his daughter played all those years ago. They still sounded pretty to him, even after all these years.**

**'IT'S YOUR FUCKING FAULT!'**

**'WHY DIDN'T YOU SAVE HER'**

**'IT'S ALL ON YOUR HEAD'**

**James continued to pluck away, ignoring the voices in his head threatening to burst out.**

_James took over, showing Madeline a few more tricks on the guitar. Although his attention was to the guitar, he could tell that she was watching him with a toothy grin._

**As James sat in the corner of his room, he could only wonder what could've been, had he died with his family that day. He put the guitar down.**

**Madeline...**

**James Jr..** **..**

**Glynda...**

**'Why did I live? Why did they have to die?'**

* * *

Setting: Forever Fall forest

Time: Night 

_Run, run, little pigs...you ain't going nowhere._

It has been hours since the two Branwen Tribal bikers have been on the road, trying to escape the demon himself. The killer of criminals, the scourge of the underworld.

James Ironwood, otherwise known as... **"The Punisher".**

The two bikers couldn't do anything but run. They tried firing back at Ironwood but no matter what they did, the bullets just bounced off of his van. As they raced down the road, they began to despair, thinking that Ironwood's van must be bulletproof or something. 

_Hmph...bastards, didn't stand a chance._

After taking a quick look at the picture of his wife, Glynda Goodwitch, and his two children that was seated on the dashboard, Ironwood sticks out his pump-action shotgun out the window and fires at the bikers. The first shot hits a biker square on their seat. After cocking the shotgun, Ironwood fired a second time. This time, the Branwen biker who he was aiming for falls off his bike while the second Branwen biker falls off when he's hit by some of the shotgun's spray. 

With both bikers on the ground, Ironwood quickly drifts the van so that he's facing them. He let the tension sit in the air as he slowly pressed on the gas pedal. He wanted to savor this moment. The bastards were gonna pay. 

"One batch."

One biker looks up with horror in his eyes. _There's no way this crazy son of a bitch is about to-_

"Two batch."

Both bikers were now screaming in terror. This son of a bitch was crazy enough to do it!

"Penny and dime."

"NOOOOOOOO-"

Ironwood's van elevated a bit, as if he just went over a normal speed bump. He looked back at the two bikers through his rearview mirror and, upon seeing their bloody, mangled up corpses, smirked.

_And that's all that was left of the Branwen Tribal biker gang. Two to go._

* * *

Setting: Bordertown across the Vacuo/Vale borderline, specifically the Vacuo territory

Time: Night 

"Here he comes!"

The Tuff Cartel member exited the taxi as a group of his friends and family rushed out to greet him. He was exhausted; after spending the last few hours fleeing Vale, he had every right to be. Especially when the entire organization had been taken down. 

By one man. The Tuff criminal still couldn't believe it. 

"Welcome home!" "Look who's here, the one that got away!"

The Tuff criminal laughed as he shook hands with everyone around him. "Screw you, Punisher, piece of shit!" he shouted out loud. Normally, he would be terrified of even uttering those words but it didn't matter now. He was in Vacuo, home turf. 

"You're safe back in Vacuo!" one of his friends remind him, "Punisher comes here, we'll kill his ass!"

/

/

_That's cute, he thinks he's safe._

Ironwood tried not to smirk as he looked down the sights of his sniper rifle. He was locked on to his target; the Tuff Cartel agent was smart to leave Vale...but not smart enough to realize that he should've gone further than just a few miles away from the border. 

/

/

"The last survivor of the cartel deserves a reward," a raccoon-faunus woman coos to the Tuff Cartel agent. The agent looks back at her and give her a lascivious smile. 

/

/

_Patience...one shot, one kill. Remember your training._

Ironwood watches as the piece of shit takes off his jacket and pays off the faunus prostitute for a night of fun.

_His last night of fun, to be exact._

Ironwood keeps the sights on the Tuff Cartel agent's head. He could take the shot right there, but he didn't want to risk hitting the faunus prostitute.

He gives it a few seconds. As soon as the faunus woman kneels down to pleasure the criminal-

**BOOM!**

Ironwood squeezes the trigger and waits for a few seconds to hit. The hit is silent but James sees the familiar pink mist spray the wall behind him. The faunus prostitute suddenly stands up. James can't hear her but can tell she's screaming.

Setting: Bordertown across the Vacuo/Vale borderline, specifically the Vale territory

Time: Night

Ironwood ejects the spent shell and cleans up the scene. _Branwen Tribal bikers, gone. Tuff Cartel, gone. One more to go..._

* * *

Setting: Vale International Airport

Time: Midday

In one of the airport's men's bathrooms, a snake-faunus member of the Kuo Kuana Kings (an offshoot of the White Fang that went from being a pro-faunus resistance group to a criminal organization) steps in, briefcase at hand. The Kings agent looks nervous, and rightfully so. He is the last of the Kuo Kuana Kings and is currently waiting for the first bullhead back to Menagerie. All to get away from one man...

The snake-faunus enters one of the stalls and quickly pulls out his scroll. He contacts his associates, hoping to hear some good news.

"Hey, it's Mickey," the snake-faunus said nervously, "Yeah, anyone else make it?"

"Nah man," his contact says, "Just got the news, Punisher iced Desmond and Trevor. That wipes out all the Kings agents that we've been trying to get a hold of."

Sweat began to drop down Mickey's face. "Oh, shit, I'm the only one left?"

Had Mickey been paying attention, he would've seen James Ironwood's boots walking towards his stall. Unfortunately, the snake-faunus was too pre-occupied with his scroll call.

"No, I'm good. I'm good." Mickey says, trying to convince himself, "Yeah, about to board. Tell Kuo Kuana to get ready for a big party. I'm on my way-"

**FWOOSH!**

Mickey barely had time to react as James Ironwood kicked the door open. Before Mickey could try to escape, Ironwood grabbed his head and slammed it against the stall's walls. Mickey slumped back on the toilet, his head ringing from the pain. Ironwood then shut the stall behind him, locking it as he did. There was no escaping from this. Just to show how screwed Mickey was, Ironwood turned around. That's when Mickey saw it...the dreaded skull-bulletproof vest that Ironwood became known for wearing. That skull meant one thing to all those who opposed him;

_You're gonna die and there's nothing you can do to stop it._

Mickey started gasping, praying that he could reach out to Ironwood. "Please don't-"

Almost in a mocking manner, Ironwood began shushing the man. It sounded like he was trying to calm the snake-faunus down but his face only telegraphed silent rage on it. 

"You won," Mickey pleaded, "You...you killed everyone! The Branwen bikers, the Tuff cartel, the Kuo Kuana Kings...they're all gone!"

Ironwood wasn't amused. "Yeah...yeah, almost."

"I get it! An eye for an eye and all that. I got a family of my own-"

"-I don't." Ironwood could've sworn he just saw Glynda from the corner of his eye. He shrugged it off.

"For Oum's sake, man, killing me is not gonna bring yours back. What does it change if I'm dead?!"

Mickey stared at Ironwood, hoping to get a decent answer. But to Ironwood, he already knew the answer. He knew the answer since the first day he started this crusade.

"Nothing."

Mickey slumped back in disbelief. 

Suddenly, Ironwood heard two businessmen talking from the other side of the restroom. People were coming in, potential witnesses. _Better end this now, then._

Immediately, Ironwood grabbed the snake-faunus' tie and started strangling him with it. Ironwood watched as the life drained from the snake-faunus' eyes. As Ironwood continued strangling this man, he heard the two businessmen talk. 

"Oh Monty Oum..."

"Jeez..."

"Can you believe that?"

"Get a room, you dirty bastards!"

_Idiots. Can't even tell the difference between a man dying and a man having some fun. Well...that says something about their character, now does it?_

After Mickey finally died, Ironwood left the man's body on the toilet. He then exited the stall and zipped up his trench coat to hide the Punisher symbol. 

_And they're all gone. Glynda, Madeline, James Jr....I got them._

* * *

Setting: City of Vale

Time: Night

Ironwood threw the Punisher vest into a barrel that was set on fire. As he watched the flames consume the vest, he felt his soul was at rest. Every rat bastard that had a hand in his family's murders were now dead. Justice was finally served. 

Mission accomplished. 

* * *

**ROOSTER TEETH**

**AND**

**WORD-WARRIOR PRESENT**

**A WORD-WARRIOR ORIGINAL SERIES**

**STARRING:**

**JAMES IRONWOOD (counterpart: Frank Castle/The Punisher)**

**TAIYANG XIAO LONG (counterpart: David Lieberman/Micro)**

**WINTER SCHNEE (counterpart: Dinah Madani)**

**LIE REN (counterpart: Lewis Wilson)**

**PIETRO POLENDINA (counterpart: Curtis Hoyle)**

**CLOVER EBI (counterpart: Sam Stein)**

**THE PUNISHER**

* * *

Setting: Construction site

Time: Morning...six months after destroying the Branwen Tribal bikers, the Tuff Cartel, and the Kuo Kuana Kings 

**BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!**

Ironwood grunted with each swing as he brought down his sledgehammer on the soon-to-be-destroyed wall. It was grunt work but he didn't mind. At least this work kept him busy. He needed to stay busy in order to avoid the staleness of apartment life. 

As he continued to work, the new guy, Jaune Arc, showed up at the construction site. Immediately, he encountered some of the more veteran workers. One of them being the orange-haired, all-brawns-and-no-brains man himself, Cardin Winchester. Alongside him were three other of his crew, Russel Thrush, Dove Bronzewing, and Sky Lark. 

"Are you the new guy?" Cardin asked.

"Yeah," Jaune replied, "Uh, Jaune Arc." He extended his hand out to shake Cardin's, who just looked at him funny, not even considering shaking Jaune's hand back.

"All right, let's see how you do," Cardin simply said, "Come on."

The construction workers made their way up to the floor where James Ironwood was. Ironwood, same as earlier, was still hammering away at the wall. Cardin could only roll his eyes at the man.

"That's the gimp," Russel sneered, "Don't worry about him. He ain't all there." Jaune watched in amazement as Ironwood continued to chip away at the wall, not even bothering to acknowledge their presence. By the time the men left, a solid 10% of the wall had been chipped away.

Some time later, nearly fifty percent of the wall was gone. Ironwood hadn't taken a break, his face covered in sweat as he continued his rampage against the wall. Cardin could only watch in disbelief, almost impressed at how focused this man was. 

"Yo!" Cardin shouted, "Rose!" Russel, Lark, and Dove laughed as Ironwood (now going under the name Jason Rose to avoid the police) just ignored them.

"Hey dumbass," Dove said, "Lunch time!" Russel tossed a rock at Ironwood, hitting his helmet. This got Ironwood to stop, only out of annoyance.

_They're just trying to get a rise out of you, don't fall for it. You dealt with worse shit back when you were in Atlas Military._

Cardin, Russel, Dove, and Lark laughed as Ironwood went back to swinging his hammer. "Retard loves that hammer," Russel joked. Jaune Arc frowned at that. He followed Cardin's trio but couldn't help but feel sorry for the man. He wasn't bothering anyone, so why the bullying?

/

/

Setting: Unfinished rooftop, construction site

Peace and quiet. 

That was the main reason why Ironwood loved the top area. While everyone ate at ground level, he had the roof to himself. Enjoying the silence, he grabbed a sandwich from his lunchbox and unwrapped the plastic. He took a big bite as he stared off into the distance, taking in the sight. No matter how many times he took it in, he still couldn't believe just how big Vale really was. 

_Okay, break's over, back at it._

As if no time had passed at all, Ironwood went back down to the floor he was working on and began working on the nearly-destroyed wall. He kept swinging all day long...

Minutes went by...

Minutes turned into hours...

The day...turned into night...

By then, he was the only one left. As he continued swinging away...they came to him. _No, not here, not now._ Ironwood could only shout as _they_ crossed his mind.

_A merry-go-round. He could hear Madeline's giggles as she rode the plastic horse._

Ironwood shouted as he swung the hammer down, hoping his screams could destroy the memory.

His swings became more erratic and soon, he was just bringing down the hammer out of frustration. Finally, he stopped swinging once the memory passed. As he dropped the hammer down to the ground, he noticed that the handle was smeared with blood. Ironwood didn't even notice his hand was bleeding from all the swinging he had been doing. 

_Oum damn it...just leave me alone._

* * *

Setting: Ironwood's apartment

Time: Night 

One-bedroom with barely enough room to move around. It wasn't much but it was home. After Ironwood changed for the night, he washed his hands of the blood that dried from earlier. His hands were calloused as hell but he didn't care. 

As Ironwood ate his dinner, the intrusive memories came back. This time, he let the memory come to him.

_Madeline Ironwood-Goodwitch reached out to him, sandwich in her hand. James could see that Madeline still had her braces at this point. Glynda sat behind her, giggling at her daughter's actions. James Jr. just rolled his eyes at his sister, thinking she was just trying to get dad points at this picnic._

Ironwood stopped eating. That was one of the better memories of his family. But yet...it still hurt to remember. 

Ironwood tried to clear his thoughts by reading a book, hoping he could keep his mind pre-occupied. But as sleep began to takeover, those memories just keep rushing back.

_Madeline was playing peek-a-boo with her father. After covering James' eyes, she pulled her hand back, giggling as she did. James Jr. looked in on both of them, laughing as he did._

Those were the good times. Even though the memories hurt, he didn't mind going to sleep to this. Just as he did...he could've sworn he felt someone else's presence in the room. A familiar scent...a familiar touch...

"Hey sleepyhead" 

Ironwood woke up. It was morning. Although it was just a dream...he could've sworn that Glynda Goodwitch was on the other side of the bed. Seeing that she really wasn't there felt...cruel. 

* * *

Setting: Construction site

Time: Morning

As usual, Ironwood was back at it with his hammer and the wall. Now, the other guys were losing their patience.

"This Oumdamn guy," Cardin sneered. 

"He's crazy, Cardin," Russel whispered, "What are you gonna do?"

Cardin, pissed off, walked up to Ironwood. "Hey, what's the story with you, man?" Cardin shouted, attracting the other construction workers. 

_Calm down...he's just trying to get a rise out of you. You're not doing anything illegal, just stay focused on the wall._

"Here early, here late," Cardin continued, "You know, if they don't ask you to work extra, they don't pay you for it, right?"

Russel, Sky Lark, and Dove agreed with Cardin. Ironwood just grunted. He didn't care for the money. 

"But you knew that, right," Cardin said, getting tired of being ignored.

"You got a tongue in your head?" Dove asked, also getting annoyed. 

"I don't know what your deal is, man...I'm guessing, uh, 'elevator don't go up to the penthouse' type thing." Cardin gestured to his head to mock Ironwood, implying that the man was crazy. Sky, Dove and Russel could only laugh as Jaune Arc watched them all, not pleased with how the bullies were treating James.

"Hey, whatever, right?" Cardin said, his tone sounding more smug, "But this shit you do, that's hurting us." Now he was letting his anger out. "Because of you, we're getting less overtime!"

"Kick his ass, Cardin," Sky Lark interrupted, his arms folded as he eyed Ironwood unhappily, "Maybe he'd understand that."

"WISE UP, WINDOW LICKER!" Russel shouted, hoping to get a rise out of Ironwood. It didn't work. 

Giving up, Cardin walked away and said, "All right, all right."

But as he walked away...he kicked over Ironwood's lunchbox. Jaune Arc frowned as the lunchbox tumbled to the ground, whatever food that was inside being ruined. Team CRDL laughed as Jaune snarled at the four bullies.

"Shit, there go the PB and Js," Lark said, getting Russel and Dove to laugh even harder. It was at this, Ironwood finally turned around. Cardin smiled, finally getting Ironwood's attention.

"There he is," Cardin said with a smug grin on his face.

Ironwood squeezed the handle of the sledgehammer. _No...he's not a criminal. He's just an asshole. Calm down, Ironwood, don't let him get to you._

"You don't want me for an enemy, man," Cardin said. Jaune cringed, hoping that a fight wouldn't break out. 

Luckily, a fight didn't. CRDL, growing bored of the situation, decided to walk away...but not before Cardin Winchester stomped all over Ironwood's sandwich. 

_You dealt with assholes like him before...let it go, Ironwood._

Unsure what to make of the situation, Jaune turned to Ironwood, then walked away, following CRDL down to the bottom floor.

/

/

CRDL was arguing amongst themselves as they headed to a car, off to enjoy the rest of the day. Jaune Arc wasn't too far behind. Being the new guy, he wanted to make new friends. Although CRDL were assholes, he chalked it up to just the guys being guys. Plus, this "Jason Rose" fellow did seem a bit odd. Jaune didn't like the bullying but he didn't know enough about James to take his side. 

"Hey, can I come with you?" Jaune asked. Dove looked at him and simply said, "No room."

At that, CRDL drove away from the scene, leaving Jaune at the construction site. 

Although a bit annoyed, Jaune let it go. Since it was still lunch time, he went back into the building to get his food. As he did, he looked up and saw that Ironwood was on the roof, just staring out into the distance.

He figured it was a bad idea to talk to the weird, antisocial guy in the crew but then again, he could also be a potential friend. Going against his gut, Jaune made his way up to the roof. 

/

/

Ironwood grunted as he saw the new guy join him. _Well, there goes my peace and quiet._

Jaune sighed as he stared out into the distance, taking in the sight of the City of Vale. "This is high, man," Jaune said, fully amazed. He then turned to Ironwood. "I'm Jaune," Jaune said as he took a seat next to Ironwood, pulling out his own lunchbox as he did. Ironwood didn't respond. _Let the kid talk...maybe he'll get tired of you and decide to walk away._

"You can see forever up here, huh?" Jaune continued, ignoring Ironwood's grunts of annoyance, "This is why you come up here?"

"Hmm?" Ironwood said, "I come up here because no one else does." _No need to be nice to the kid. Just let him know up front._

Jaune nodded his head at that. "Yeah, I get it," Jaune said.

Awkward silence. Jaune broke it by saying, "Jason, right? Well, Jason, my grandma makes the best sandwich in all of Vale. And you ain't gonna know that unless you try one!"

Ironwood looked at Jaune sheepishly as he took out a tupperware container with two sandwiches. Jaune placed the container between the two of them and started eating one of the sandwiches.

"Come on, man," Jaune encouraged, "A man's gotta eat. Especially the way you're throwing that hammer. Like Cool Hand Luke or something. One-man chain gang. You like that movie?" 

Jaune looked to Ironwood, hoping to strike a conversation up with him.

"I take one of those sandwiches, you stop talking?" Ironwood snapped at him. He looked at Jaune, deeply annoyed. 

Jaune frowned but then chuckled, realizing he was pushing his luck. "No promises," Jaune said as he took another bite of his sandwich. Ironwood, feeling slightly bad over snapping at the kid, grabbed the other sandwich and began to eat. _Damn...kid wasn't lying, this is pretty good._

"Appreciate it," Ironwood said. Jaune nodded at that.

As the two ate their food, a thought occurred to Jaune. He turned to Ironwood again and, watching his words, he said, "You know...everyone thinks you're a retard." 

No response. 

"But I knew you weren't! Cardin shouldn't have done that, man. Everyone's just worried about making money, that's all. I mean, I could use the overtime myself. I ain't worked in a while and I gotta pay for my grandma's meds."

Ironwood nodded at that, still unsure how to respond. Taking note of Ironwood's response, Jaune noticed something else about the man.

"Those are some serious scars, man," Jaune said, pointing out Ironwood's battle wounds. Ironwood shifted uncomfortably, trying to hide his scar tissue away from Jaune's sight. 

"That one a bullet hole?" Jaune said, still curious.

"Yeah."

"...wow. You some sort of secret badass, Jason?"

"Atlas Military. Special Operatives Unit."

Jaune looked at Ironwood in surprise, apparently not expecting that answer. "Yeah?"

"Yeah."

"Well, my pa was in the Special Operatives Unit. Yeah, in the 1/2 down in Mantle. He was like a superhero to me or something. Except, they don't die, right?" At that, Jaune's face slightly dropped. Ironwood could only bow his head in respect to his fellow fallen Atlesian soldier.

"I'm sorry to hear that," Ironwood said. _How many times have I had to say that?_

Jaune continued, saying, "My pa, he served three tours. Mistral twice, Menagerie. Then him and my ma were coming back from a movie one night and got clipped by some kid who had just passed his driving test. I woke up the next morning, they were just gone."

The two men took a moment of silence, letting Jaune's words hang in the air. For Ironwood, this conversation was starting to hit too dangerously close to home.

"You got family?" Jaune's question took Ironwood by surprise, "I was 12. I had to come up here, live with my grandma. She's the only family I got left."

Being alone. Losing your entire family to some tragedy. The kid didn't mean it but the memories started flooding back.

_"Dad, look!" The voice of Madeline hung in the air. Then, he saw Glynda again. Still as beautiful as ever, as if she was still there. Still alive._

"-Semper Fi, right?" Ironwood completely missed the rest of Jaune's story as Jaune had just finished wrapping it up. 

"Look, Jaune," Ironwood said, shaken by the sudden rush of memories, "Thanks for the sandwich. You know, I...appreciate that. But I'm not looking for a pal, yeah? Whatever it is you're looking for, I'm not it."

"Yeah...okay." Jaune frowned as Ironwood stood up and walked away. He had to get off the roof, get away from the kid. Before the memories come back. 

* * *

Setting: Pietro Polendina's military support circle group, City of Vale

Time: Night

"There's a story I heard. There's a soldier in a hole and he can't get out, so he yells for help. An NCO comes by and says, 'Suck it up, son. Dig Deep'. And gives the soldier a shovel. The soldier does as he's told and digs that hole deeper. Then an officer comes by, says, 'Hell, son, use the tools your NCO gave you!' And throws him a bucket. So the trooper in the hole uses the shovel to fill that bucket, and the hole was deeper still, right? Next up, psychiatrist comes by and offers him drugs, tell him, 'This is gonna help you forget about the hole'. And they do. But then the pills run out. Then a soldier comes up, a guy just like him, covered in mud and dirt, and he hears the yells for help. And that filthy soldier jumps down in the hole, too. And the kid, he freaks out. 'What are you doing? Now we're both stuck in a hole.' And the filthy soldier just smiles and says, 'Calm down, buddy. I've been here before. I know how to get out.'."

As Pietro Polendina finished his story, he sat back in his seat to take in all the military veterans in the room. "Got a couple of new faces in here today," Pietro said, "Welcome. If you wanna talk, talk. If you just wanna listen, that's all good, too. No judgment here, just brothers and sisters who understand-"

"-only thing you've got to understand is the world isn't changing," Ilia Amitola said angrily. Pietro turned to the chameleon-faunus, who had her arms crossed. "The real persecuted minority in this country today is the Faunus patriot."

"Oh, here we go with the same bullshit," Elm Ederne, a fellow veteran said. 

"You're blind, you buff asshole. Don't rag on me because I can see."

"Kiss my ass, animal-"

"Elm!" Pietro interrupted, "Let Ilia finish her piece, the same way you do when we get a blow-by-blow account of your week's titty bar action." At that, the other military vets chuckled while Elm pouted in response. 

Ilia huffed and continued her White Fang rant. "We've got to do something about the anti-faunus, Schnee-loving assholes who are running Vale into the ground. The ones who want to take faunus rights and our guns!" Ilia sat back in her seat, a smile on her face as everyone else rolled their eyes. Same shit, different day.

"Anyone else got a take?" Pietro asked. Before an awkward silence could set in, Lie Ren spoke up and said:

"I just know...that I fought for this country and that it's got no place for me." 

Pietro and the other military vets could only stare at the young huntsman, understanding his feelings. 

"I don't know what the rules are anymore, you know?" Ren continued, his tone somber and depressed.

"They're scared, man," Ilia said, catching Ren's attention, "Because they aren't stupid. They spent 15 years training an army and then abandoned it on the streets. A time is gonna come when we have to defend ourselves and...and put things back to how they were! You love this kingdom, you better be ready...cause the next war's gonna be here. Blood will flow in the streets."

"Sic semper tyrannis," Ren said, knowing that was what Ilia was referencing. 

"'Thus always to tyrants'?" Pietro asked, "You really think our governments are tyrants, Ren?" 

Ren couldn't answer as he shifted in his seat uncomfortably. "All I know," Ren started, "is that we risked our lives and we did terrible things...and it meant nothing when we got home." 

_Too damn right, kid._

James Ironwood had been watching the entire meeting from the hallway, making sure his presence wasn't noticed. This Ren kid...he didn't know him but he hit the jackpot with his answer. 

A few minutes later, the veterans wrapped up their meeting. As Lie Ren placed his chair back on the rack, Pietro walked up to him and, with genuine concern, asked, "How you sleeping, Ren?" 

"Uh, better. I work a lot but, uh, better. Group helps. I've been reading a lot."

"Perspective is good...but, the answers have to be your own. You have to take an honest look in here" - Pietro gestures to Ren's heart - "before we look anywhere else. All right?" 

Lie Ren nodded his head at that, although he still seemed a bit unsure of himself.

"Okay, take care of yourself, Ren. I'll see you next time." 

And at that, Lie Ren left the room. As Ren left, Ironwood stepped in.

"It was a good meeting, Pietro," Ironwood said.

Pietro turned around and smiled at seeing his old friend. "There he is."

"You good?"

"I'm copacetic, James. You?"

"Oh, yeah, I'm great."

"It's been a while."

"Yeah, I'm a slow reader." Ironwood took out the book he had been reading to get his mind off of Glynda and the kids. "I appreciate it, really enjoyed the story."

Pietro nodded his head at that and walked up to Ironwood to grab the book. "Like I told Mr. Lie Ren...books are great, but they don't hold all the answers."

Ironwood nodded, agreeing with that sentiment. "Can I get some coffee?"

"Help yourself. Oh, and just letting you know, Ren drives a cab all night. I don't think it's a coincidence either. I suspect he talks to himself in the mirror. And that's part of the problem, Ironwood. Nobody wants to be themselves anymore. Internet, social media, Oumdamn talent shows for assholes...everybody wants to be somebody else. Nobody...is happy just to look at themselves in the mirror and see themselves. Then it means they don't have to be responsible either. So what about you, Ironwood?" 

Ironwood looked at Polendina, unsure how to answer. 

"What's it gonna take to make you happy?"

Ironwood rolled his eyes at that. "Come on...'happy'? Happy is a kick in the balls waiting to happen."

"So you kick yourself in the balls first," Pietro snapped back, "That's crazy, Captain. Look...you got half a life left to live, my friend. If you don't, you might as well be dead."

"Oh, I am dead, Pietro. You didn't hear?" Ironwood smirked, remembering how he had gotten away from his true identity by making everyone believe he was dead.

"Bullshit," Pietro dully responded, "You got a name, a passport...as I recall, 'James Ironwood' is dead. 'Jason Rose', he's got a life."

Ironwood looked away, unsure what to say to that.

"Anybody that had anything to do with what happened to Glynda and your kids are dead," Pietro continued, "Mission accomplished. And I don't have a problem with that. Hell, if you would've asked me, I woulda helped you do it-"

"-I know that. I know you would have."

"But that was months ago. Now the only person you're _punishing_ is yourself."

_Am I? Is that really what I'm doing?_

Ironwood didn't want to ponder Pietro's words. Looking for a way out, Ironwood turned his way to the door and simply said, "Thanks for the coffee". Pietro sighed in response, hating seeing his friend this way.

Before Ironwood left the room completely, he turned back and said, "Hey, Pietro."

"What?"

"How often you think about it? You know...the shit we did over there? During our tours of service?"

Pietro shrugged. "All the time. But my conscience is clear."

 _Clear._ Those words stung Ironwood. "Mistral...was different, you know?"

"Different how?" Pietro asked, confused.

"Just different. Things we did, they...they kinda got blurred."

This caught Pietro's attention as he started to walk his way back to him. "What were you into, James?"

Ironwood turned away. He could only sigh in frustration. 

"You see, what worries me the most," Pietro said, taking in Ironwood's response, "is that you've been in the hole so long that it's become home." 

Ironwood nodded at that. "Maybe that's where I'm supposed to be." 

Pietro sighed again, then chuckled. "Do me a favor, Jimmy. Don't be a wallowing asshole." 

Ironwood chuckled at that.

"Before I have to take this fake leg off and beat you to death with it," Pietro said playfully but stern enough to show that he was still being serious, "Just imagine your tombstone! James Ironwood loses an ass-kicking contest to a one-legged man! I'd do it!" 

"Yeah," Ironwood said, letting out a few more laughs, "I'd actually kinda like to see that. Take care of yourself, Pietro." 

* * *

Setting: Vale Police Department 

Time: Midday

_Missing Informant: Vine Zeki_

_Headline: Illegal Dust smuggling operation in Mistral?_

_Heading 2: White Fang unit raids Atlas Military outpost?_

_Note: Joint operation with Atlas due to shared interests_

_Agent in charge: Specialist Winter Schnee_

"So who was this guy to you?"

Agent Clover Ebi asked that question as the brand new specialist from Atlas arrived, her arms filled with files on her next case.

"Vine Zeki was my partner," Winter said, "He was taken from his home in Kuchinashi, shot in the head, and buried in an unmarked grave."

"That's quite a story," Clover said, "I mean, doesn't bode well for me as your newly assigned partner."

"It's more than a story," Winter retorted, "And Ebi...we're not partners." 

"Call me Clover," Clover said with a smirk. He looked back at the documents that Winter laid out in front of him and began taking in the information. "By the way...first name only please, Ebi sounds weird to me. And, uh, according to the assignments, that's exactly what we are. Partners, I mean. Sure, you're the lead specialist with a nice office and I'm the junior with the shitty little desk outside, but...partners nevertheless-"

"-gotta earn my trust first," Winter said, bluntly, not taking her eyes off the mountain of files she had to work with. 

"Yeah," Clover sarcastically said, "That's exactly what I have to do. Your approval immediately being the most important thing in my life."

Clover approached Winter, looking over the files that she was looking over. It was amazing that she could stay organized with this amount of paperwork.

"Schnee, you really think Robyn Hill is gonna let you run with all this?" Clover asked. 

Winter looked back at Clover. Her eyes were full of determination as she said, "I'm confident I can persuade the higher-ups of the case's merits."

"Well...I guess you are new here."

As if on cue, Clover and Winter heard knocking at the door. Turning around, they saw the head of the department, Robyn Hill, enter the room.

"Good morning ma'am," Winter said hastily.

"Back in the country three weeks and you already have a case for me?" Robyn asked as she crossed her arms. 

"I brought this one back from Mistral with me, ma'am," Winter said, "This man, Vine Zeki of the Mistralian National Police, discovered Atlesian soldiers were trafficking illegal Dust. And they killed him for it."

Robyn stared at Winter, her face neutral. Upon taking in her words, Robyn turned to Clover and said, "Ebi, give us the room." 

"Sir," Clover said, "As Schnee's new partner, shouldn't I-"

"-close the door on your way out."

Annoyed, Clover turned to Winter, rolled his eyes, then walked out. 

"You're lucky Schnee," Robyn said, turning her attention solely to Winter, "A lot of people would give their left arm for this job."

"I was happy where I was...arms intact," Winter said, trying not to sound annoyed at Robyn's language.

"Others weren't. The investigation you were pursuing in Kuchinashi was deemed to serve no one."

"Deemed by who?" Winter said, eager to push the subject.

"Frankly, you must have a guardian angel, Schnee. They pulled you out of Kuchinashi before you did your career some real harm. I guess you tick a lot of boxes because they didn't want the poster girl embarrassing them." Robyn said that last part with a bit of satisfaction in her voice. 

Offended, Winter could just sigh. "Wow. That was borderline sexist, insulting to my family name, and demeaning of my abilities all in one sentence, ma'am. Bravo."

"Well, sue me. It's your word against mine. Kinda like your case here." 

"The Atlesian government gave Vine Zeki our word, and it got him killed."

"A place like Mistral, who knows what got him killed?" Robyn said dismissively, "He could've been dirty." 

Winter eyed Robyn, angrier than before. "I was pulled out of Kuchinashi because something stunk to high heaven and I was close to finding out exactly what."

"And here you are," Robyn snapped back, "Now, I like tenacious and energetic, Schnee. I find it kinda hot in a woman."

Winter rolled her eyes at that.

"But I will not stand for insubordinate," Robyn said firmly, "Are we clear? Ask your buddy Ebi about that. Now, Kuchinashi is off-limits. Otherwise, you can quit."

Realizing this was going nowhere fast, Winter faked a smile and, in the chippiest tone she could reach, said, "You're the boss."

"Yes, I am." Robyn said before walking back out.

* * *

Setting: Construction site

Time: Night

**BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!**

Ironwood was back at it again, trying to take the wall down with his sledgehammer. As he destroyed the wall, Jaune Arc noticed that Team CRDL was once again talking amongst themselves, figuring out what to do now that their shift was done. As they started talking about heading off to the bar, Jaune decided to step up and say, "I could use a drink."

CRDL looked back at Jaune, surprised at the man. 

"Come on, Cardin," Jaune said, giving him a friendly 'nudge' on the shoulder, "Let me come with you guys. Look, first round's on me."

At that, CRDL got excited. They decided to bring the boy along as Ironwood continued to hammer away. 

_(TO BE CONCLUDED)_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Based on: "3AM", episode 1, season 1 of "The Punisher"
> 
> Originally, Qrow was going to be Frank Castle, but then I realized it made way more sense to have Ironwood, seeing as how he's an actual military guy.
> 
> Also, if I'm feeling up to it, I might make a separate react fic to this. For now, I'm fine with just the re-enactments.
> 
> Side note: Jason Rose (the pseudonym Ironwood takes on) is a reference to Ironwood's voice actor. I figured that would work as a parallel to Frank's Pete Castiglione.


	4. 3AM (part 2 of 2)

Setting: Winter Schnee's office, Vale Police Department

Time: Night

_Great, another all-nighter._

Winter Schnee sighed as she looked through all the files regarding the Vine Zeki case. She knew this case would be complicated but the amount of paperwork to go through was dismaying. As she put down one of the many volumes of records, she heard knocking at her door. Looking up, she saw that it was Clover Ebi, a sheepish look on his face. _He must still be a bit salty from this afternoon._

"Good meeting with Robyn Hill, huh?" Clover said as he closed the door behind him.

Winter growled. "Peachy," she said. She still couldn't believe this case was closed this prematurely. 

"As your immediate junior in the chain of command, am I allowed to ask how you're feeling about that?" Clover asked as he removed his jacket and took a seat in front of Winter's desk.

"How about you lay off with the 'junior' garbage? I can live without your wiseass comments right now." Winter huffed as she glared at Clover. Today just wasn't her day. 

Clover shrugged. "Not really sure what else I have to offer." After a beat and Winter readjusting herself on her seat, Clover said, "You know how I knew Robyn wouldn't want your case?"

This caught Winter's attention.

Clover leaned in his chair. "You got me for a partner." He smirked at her as Winter rolled her eyes. However, she couldn't pretend that she wasn't amused by his joke, letting a soft smile form on her face. 

"You're telling me this, why?" Winter asked.

"You seem like a good person. Someone with a career in the department if you really want one." 

"What did you do to piss her off?"

Clover leaned back in his chair and nodded his head. He then smirked and said, "You gotta earn my trust first."

_Ha. Good one._

Clover then stood up and said, "So...what now?" Winter, with a thought forming in her head, grabbed the main file on the Vine Zeki case and moved her way to the bulletin board in the room. The board was covered with all sorts of headlines, all relating to the Zeki case. Clover followed her, examining the board as he did. 

"Now," Winter started, realizing her next move could get her in a lot of trouble, "I want you to get me whatever we have on an Atlas Military colonel called Kobalt, the explosion and drug bust at the 41st Street docks last year, and everything available on one of his men...Captain James Ironwood."

Clover flipped through some documents and saw the mugshot belonging to the infamous man now known as "The Punisher". He couldn't believe it...they were chasing after a ghost story!

"The Punisher?" Clover asked Winter incredulously. His face couldn't hide the fact that he wasn't taking this case seriously anymore. "He's dead!"

Winter shook her head at that. "Ironwood and Kobalt served in Mistral, same unit...then both are dead one day and 20 miles apart...right here in the City of Vale? That strike you as a coincidence?" Winter smirked as she could see the gears started rotating in Clover's head. 

"You're gonna run with this anyway? Even after Robyn Hill shut everything up?"

"Do you have a problem with that?"

Clover thought about it for a second. He then shrugged and said, "No."

_Well...that was easy._

Clover then said, "I'm already on the shit pile. Just surprised that a hotshot, ice queen like you is so eager to join me there."

_Don't call me 'ice queen', you fool._

Clover left the room as Winter started to feel better about today. The Vine Zeki case was far from over.

* * *

Setting: Bar in downtown City of Vale

Time: Night 

Team CRDL and Jaune were enjoying their drinks, all five of them clearly buzzed for the night. Slightly stumbling as he stood up, Jaune called over the bartender and said, "Five more beers and...and five more shots of that good stuff, whatever it's called, for me and my new pals here!"

Pricey? Probably. But hey, at least he finally had friends. 

The bartender rolled her eyes at the request. "Last round, then I'm closing up," she said with a scowl, "If any of you pukes, you assholes are cleaning it up, all right." 

_Well, they don't call me Vomit Boy for nothing._

"You hear that," Dove Bronzewing smirked as he pushed Jaune, "Keep it together, Jauney!" 

As Jaune walked over to the bathroom, Cardin turned to Russel Thrush, a serious look on his face as he did. "I need to pull another job," Cardin whispered, looking around to make sure no one heard him. Russel was lost in deep thought, pondering their options. 

Cardin continued, "I got this...Neopolitan loan shark. This guy's up my ass. And you know what they'll do to me once they notify the head ice cream bitch in charge." It was true, the Neopolitans are considered one of the most feared criminal syndicates in the City of Vale. After Roman Torchwick was taken down by the vigilante known as Daredevil, his second-in-command, Neo, was said to have taken over. And rumor has it...if you crossed her once, don't expect to live.

Cardin was now shaking as he kept talking to Russel. "Prick is threatening to break my legs, take my car, the whole thing."

Russel chuckled, but out of nervousness. "Man, what were you thinking?!" Russel said to Cardin. He knew better than to make a deal with a member of the Neopolitans. "What were you thinking taking liens off those guys? What'd you think was gonna happen?"

Cardin stared back at Russel, pissed but knowing that he didn't have the high ground in this argument. 

"You got something for me or not," Cardin pressed on. 

The bartender refilled their drinks and, after thanking the lady, Russel turned back to Cardin. "Yeah, all right, all right," he said, "Just take it easy, man, okay? I'll, uh...I'll call my cousin. All right? See if he can hook us up again." 

"Soon, Russel, soon."

"Okay, okay! I'll call his scroll tonight!"

Cardin and Russel were then distracted by the sound of stumbling behind them. They turned and saw a giggling Jaune try to steady himself after he nearly toppled over. The alcohol was clearly starting to get to him.

"The state of this guy, man," Russel said with a frown.

As Jaune took a seat next to CRDL, the bartender came back with the check. Cardin looked at the receipt, chuckled, then handed it back to Jaune. 

"Pay the lady," Cardin said, eyeing Jaune as he waited for the man's reaction. As soon as Jaune saw how many liens all the drinks cost, his face couldn't help but drop. 

"What," Cardin smugly said, "You said you were buying, right?" 

_But it's 344 liens! How'd we spend that much!?_

As Jaune started to ponder whether this was a bad idea or not, he could feel the disapproving faces of all of Team CRDL and the bartender looking right at him. Not wanting to lose face, Jaune sighed and said, "Yeah, yeah. I got it."

Instantly, the mood changed. CRDL was cheering the man as Jaune looked somberly at the receipt, wondering if this was going to screw him over when the bills come in. 

* * *

_Setting: Ironwood's bedroom_

_Time: Morning  
  
_

_"Hey baby, can I come in?"_

_Ironwood watched as the door to his bedroom opened. Glynda Goodwitch, looking as radiant as ever, stepped in. She took a seat right next to Ironwood on the bed and caressed his cheek._

_"How are you doing, sleepyhead?"_

_"Hey," Ironwood said, as he playfully brushed some of Glynda's hair and caressed her cheek as well. "What time is it?"_

_"It's 10:30. You needed your sleep."_

_"Yeah."_

_"There's plenty of time now that you're home."_

* * *

Setting: Ironwood's apartment

Time: Morning

Ironwood woke with a jolt. Once again...Glynda wasn't there.

_Fucking memories..._

* * *

Setting: Construction site

Time: Afternoon 

Instead of working on the wall, Ironwood was sitting down, enjoying some coffee. He still couldn't shake his dream that morning. Glynda being happy, being next to him in his bed. It felt too real that the fact she wasn't there when he woke up...it was still too much of a gut punch. 

As he took a sip of his coffee, he heard Cardin and Russel walked up behind him. They didn't seem to notice he was there so Ironwood decided to ignore them. It was for the best, he didn't want to get involved in a fight, even though they were pricks. But as he sat there, trying to ignore them, Ironwood couldn't help but pick up on pieces of their conversation.

"My cousin came through big time," Russel said.

"All right, all right. What's the job, huh?" Cardin asked, Ironwood imagining that the man had a big, doofy grin on his face as he said that. 

"It's a poker game. High stakes! Fifty, maybe even seventy grand."

Cardin huffed happily. _Hmm...so they're gamblers? Well, everyone needs their hobbies._

Russel continued. "I know, I know. They got a 'no guns at the table' rule." That caught Ironwood's ears. _Guns?_ This was starting to sound fishy. 

"Except for one guard standing at the door. We go in, we take out the guard, the two of us cover the room. One of us scoops up the liens, and one outside in the car." 

Ironwood gritted his teeth. _So they're not gamblers. They're planning on robbing a bunch of gamblers._ Ironwood couldn't help but feel that the skull vest was somehow back on his chest. That part of his life was over but still. 

"What's the catch," Cardin asked, "Why isn't someone hitting this every week?" 

At that, Russel couldn't help but laugh. This was where it got ridiculous. "It's protected by the Neopolitans." 

Cardin's earlier mood instantly switched to disbelief. "Are you crazy!? You want to hit an ice cream gang game?! I don't know, Russel. Russel, this is-"

"-hey. Don't be such a pussy. And besides, I thought you'd like the idea of paying back the Neopolitans' shylock with their own liens." 

Cardin shrugged at that. He couldn't help it, that did sound like payback. "Yeah, I do like that," he said. 

"There we go," Russel said with a smirk, "Attaboy, attaboy-"

Ironwood took a sip of his coffee, slightly louder than before. This caught Russel's attention. He knew what he was doing. _If you're gonna discuss your criminal plans...maybe don't do it a few feet away from some random bystander. Idiots._

Cardin huffed in anger as he stepped over to where Ironwood was sitting. Ironwood just pretended to ignore the man. 

"Look who it is," Cardin said as Russel moved around Ironwood, "Captain Batshit. Were you listening to us? Hmm?"

Russel tried kicking the wall behind Ironwood to try to intimidate him. Ironwood didn't even budge, his nerves were too rock solid.

"Everywhere I turn, there you are, pissing me off," Cardin growled, "Now you, you need to mind your own business.

"Putting your nose where it don't belong, huh?" Russel said. 

Ironwood rolled his eyes and threw out the rest of his coffee. _This isn't worth my time._ He then stood up and grabbed his sledgehammer. As he tried to leave the area, both men blocked his path. 

"You're gonna get hurt, gimp," Russel said. _Yeah, we'll see about that._

As Ironwood tried to turn around, Cardin placed his hand on his chest, stopping him. Ironwood's grip on the sledgehammer tightened, which Cardin noticed. "Oh, you wanna do something with that hammer," Cardin taunted, "Huh? You wanna do something? What do you wanna do? You wanna take me out?"

_Calm down...not worth it. Just let him talk his game. That's all he is, talk._

"I'm right here. I ain't going anywhere. And I will mess you up without breaking a sweat. Are we clear on that? Huh?" As if he was tempting fate, Cardin shoved Ironwood. Ironwood didn't even budge. 

"Yeah, you better stay out of my way, or that hammer's gonna find a new home up your ass. Do you understand?"

Russel chuckled as Ironwood kept his grip tight on the sledgehammer. 

Before the conversation could go any further, the three men heard a loud bang in the other side of the site. Cardin and Russel ran over to check it out while Ironwood remained in place. After a few seconds, Ironwood walked over to see what the big ruckus was all about. 

Much to Cardin and Russel's dismay, Sky Lark's leg had gotten messed up from a falling pipe. Already, the other construction workers rushed in, trying to help the man as he started bleeding out all over the floor. 

As Ironwood joined the other construction workers, Jaune Arc instantly noticed he was there. Without thinking, Jaune shouted, "You were in the Special Operatives Unit, right! You must know first aid or field medicine or something! Come on!"

_He's with Cardin...let him rot._

Ironwood walked away, not saying a word. As he did, Cardin caught what Jaune said. Special Operatives Unit. He eyed Ironwood, not sure what to make of this new information. 

/

/

As the ambulance took Sky Lark away, Cardin turned to Russel and said, "We gotta cancel tonight." 

Russel shook his head at that. "No, man, my cousin will think we pussied out. Besides, I thought you needed the liens!" 

"I do!"

"Then let's do it! We got nothing to worry about! Don't worry."

As Cardin and Russel made their way back into the main building, a thought occurred to Cardin. It was a risky thought but he figured it was worth a shot. "What about him? Blondie boy, Jaune Arc?"

"You can't be serious" Russel said with a flat tone.

"What? It could work. You saw how eager he was to join the crew." Turning to Jaune, Cardin shouted out, "Hey Jaune, come here!"

Russel sighed as he saw the skinny blonde guy walk over to them, a look of confusion etched on his face. 

"That was messed up, huh?" Jaune said, cringing as he recalled how badly wounded Sky Lark was.

"Yeah, shitty luck," Cardin said, "For him, for us. Hey look, we got a thing tonight. Make us some real liens. But, with Lark going down, we've got a man short. I ain't gonna lie to you, Jaune. This ain't exactly...legal." 

As he said those words, Jaune could see Ironwood in the distance. He was frowning at him, but he was not sure why. 

"You got the balls for this job?" Cardin asked.

Every instinct in his body was telling him to say no. However...Jaune also started wondering if this would lead to him losing his already fragile friendship with CRDL. No, no way, he couldn't mess this up. He needed the company.

"Hey, man, I got plenty of balls," Jaune said, a little unsure of himself. 

"I don't doubt it. So you in?"

At that, Jaune started to really doubt himself. As he fidgeted with his sleeves, he looked at both Cardin and Russel and said, "No, man, I need to know more about it-"

"Nah," Russel interrupted, "You're in or you're out." 

"Serious liens, hour's work. You'd be doing us a solid."

Somehow, Jaune felt Ironwood's presence get even stronger. Like he was a guardian angel, sent down from heaven, frowning at his actions. 

Jaune sighed. "Sure, I'm down for it."

Cardin and Russel cheered and welcomed Jaune into their crew. From CRDL...to CRDJ. As Jaune turned around, he saw Ironwood approach him, his face still frowning. As Ironwood and Jaune crossed each other's paths, Jaune could've sworn he saw Ironwood shake his head at him, as if he were disappointed. 

* * *

Setting: Willow Schnee's penthouse, downtown City of Vale 

Time: Night

"Why is it that you resent being home so much, do you think?"

Winter sighed as she heard those words being uttered by her mother, Willow Schnee. Winter turned to her mother, looking at her right in the eyes.

"I resent being forced to come back," Winter said, "I resent that no one is hiding that fact. Mostly, I...I resent that no one wants the truth." 

"I just want you to be sure that this case of yours isn't just a way to avoid dealing with losing someone you were close to-"

A little peeved, Winter said, "I didn't lose anyone. They killed him! I told Vine Zeki he could trust us. Told him he could trust me."

As Willow eyed Winter, sad that she couldn't comfort her daughter in her time of need, Winter sat down on the couch across from Willow. Despite hating her mother's drinking habits, even Winter needed some wine to deal with her frustrations at the office. At least the buzz felt good. She poured herself half a glass and took a sip. 

"How much are you drinking these days?" Willow Schnee asked.

Winter rolled her eyes at that. _Extremely ironic coming from you, mother._

"Monty Oum, mother," Winter sneered, "Only now and then. Maybe more now that I'm home and have access to your $100 liens a bottle stuff. I know your heart is in the right place, but I don't need therapy. Definitely not from you. No offense." 

Winter slightly cringed at what she had to say. But it was true, she didn't need the lectures from her mother, especially regarding her drinking. Knowing her mother's old drinking habits, that just reeked of hypocrisy.

Willow just nodded at her daughter's words. "None taken." 

"That. That right there. That is why therapy would never work for me. Talking to you is like...it's like interviewing a suspect you know has all the answers and just smiles in your face!" 

"That's not about being a psychiatrist. It's about being your mother." 

Winter sighed at that. She knew she was beat from that one sentence. Willow smirked, knowing she won.

"It's nice to have you back," Willow said, "And nice to share this with you." Winter almost laughed when she saw Willow Schnee pick up her own wine glass and held it out to her for a toast. Winter obliged her mother and clinked their wine glasses together. Willow then took a big sip of her wine as Winter sat down next to her on the couch. 

"It's temporary," Winter said, "Just till I find a place." Winter slightly cringed at the prospect of apartment hunting in Vale. Somehow, it was easier back in Mantle. 

"Every night, I drink a glass of wine over dinner with your father," Willow said, noticing Winter's look of disgust at the mention of Jacques Schnee, "He usually pours it for me. And not once, in almost 40 years, has he joined me. His faith in the Brothers is as strong as my lack of it. I sometimes ask him 'how can a surgeon believe in the gods?' He says he would go mad if he couldn't see some kind of guiding principle in the world." 

Winter sighed at that. She wasn't much into religion, but she could understand the need to believe in principles. "I have faith in a system," Winter said, "Our system. The one that took you and father in and made you wealthy and respected. Atlas gave us freedom. But it's fragile. It needs protection."

Willow smirked at that. "Your father's fate in the gods doesn't mean that he cannot see the flaws in his religion-"

Annoyed and with the wine starting to affect her mood, Winter snapped, "Why don't you just tell me what it is you're trying to say, mother?"

"This case of yours is heresy, Winter. You've been told as much. What you're doing scares me...threatens the peace between Vale, Atlas, and Mistral. I don't want to see your head on a plate."

At that, Winter just stared down at her wine. _Oh...so that's what she meant._

* * *

Setting: One of the Neopolitans' many hideouts

Time: Night 

Cardin, Russel, Dove, and Jaune geared up as they approached the hideout. Jaune was still nervous but it was too late to back out now. He was here, revolver in his hand, he had to follow through.

The building they were going to hit was the back of some fancy Atlesian restaurant, perfect for gangsters to just hang out and hide from the police. Each member of CRDJ was wearing ski masks to hide their identity. As Cardin, Russel, and Jaune made their way in, Dove stayed outside to stand guard, keep the car running, and watch for anyone else coming by. 

After waiting for all the Neopolitan gang members to settle in, the three robbers burst their way into the mob's game. They all had their weapons drawn as the Neopolitans looked at them, unamused. The one guard, who wasn't paying attention to the door, was quickly subdued by Cardin with a swift pistol whip to the back of his head. 

"Nobody move!" Cardin shouted as Russel, Dove, and Jaune began to do crowd control.

"Eyes down, or you get what he got!" Russel shouted as well. 

The head of the Neopolitan gangsters, a grizzly-looking man who had the same pink, brown, and white hair as the lead boss, just stared at CRDJ, as if to say he was not impressed by their antics.

Jaune froze. _Neopolitans! Really?! Why the hell are we robbing these guys!?_

Cardin noticed Jaune's fear and immediately snapped him out of it. "Hey, bag the liens, dumbass!" Cardin shouted. Immediately, Jaune holstered his revolver, took out a duffel bag, and began collecting all the liens he could grab.

"All right, listen up, fellas," Cardin said, "This is gonna go nice and easy. We know none of you is packing, so no heroics!" Cue more eye rolling from the Neopolitan gangmembers. Jaune felt his skin crawl. Even with guns pointed at their heads, they were not shaken. 

The Neopolitan leader looked straight at Cardin and said, "You boys should leave while you can." 

"Shut up, dairy head, or I'll pump you full of holes!" Russel shouted at the man.

"Do you have any idea whose game this is? Do you even know who you're stealing from? Madame Neo...she may be cute but she will rip apart anyone who crosses her. Best believe that."

Cardin shivered at the thought of going up against Neo. The Neopolitan leader noticed Cardin's involuntary shake and smirked.

"I guess you really don't know who you're fucking with," he said, "Otherwise, you wouldn't be here." 

Russel pressed his gun onto the leader's neck and said, "Or maybe we don't give a shit about you oily Neopolitan shitbags."

The leader just sighed. "You're all dead."

At that, Cardin's confidence nearly crumbled. He turned to Jaune and shouted, "Come on, let's go! Hurry!"

By this point, Cardin and Russel were both urging Jaune to finish collecting. As he started to speed up, the more he started to panic and mess up. 

The Neopolitan leader noticed Jaune's panicked breathing and smirked at him. "You got any sense, kid," the leader said, "You'll drop that bag and walk away-"

"-don't speak again, asshole," Russel interrupted. 

"Or what?" the leader said, still not shaken. 

As Jaune began to panic more, the duffel bag got caught on one of the gangsters' chairs. After prying the bag free, he accidentally dropped it, spilling liens all over the ground. Cardin groaned as the Neopolitans began to snicker at Jaune. Jaune, quickly realizing he messed up, crouched down to pick up all the spilled liens.

The problem was...in his panic to make sure all the liens were in the bag... **he dropped his wallet.**

The ID card was clear as day. "ARC, JAUNE", even had his address etched on it. 

The room froze at that. Cardin and Russel could only stare at Jaune in disbelief. The Neopolitans smirked, having already memorized Jaune's personal information. And Jaune...it took every inch of willpower not to vomit from sheer fear. 

"Shit," the Neopolitan leader smirked, "You really screwed this up... _Jaune Arc._ " The ice cream gangster emphasized his name, filling Jaune up with even more anxiety. 

Russel, panicking, turned to Cardin. "We gotta cap em all!" he shouted as Cardin pulled Russel back.

"No, no!" Cardin shouted, "We gotta get out of here! Move!" 

Not wasting any more time, Jaune picked up his wallet and the last of the liens. Cardin, Russel, and Jaune then fled the Neopolitans, realizing that even if they could escape the area, they were still screwed. 

* * *

Setting: Ironwood's apartment

Time: Night 

As Ironwood tried to sleep for the night, he couldn't stop thinking about earlier. CRDL were clearly planning a robbery and now, they roped in the new guy...Jaune Arc was his name, right? 

_Why should I even care? The kid's a dumbass. If he gets killed, that's on him._

With that thought, Ironwood closed his eyes, hoping to fall asleep instantly. 

/

/

_There she is again. Ironwood looked up and saw Glynda Goodwitch entering the bedroom. She was still as radiant as ever...almost too radiant. Like a painting, never losing its beauty._

_Glynda made her way to him and lightly caressed his ear._

_"Hey, sleepyhead," she said._

_"What?" Ironwood asked._

_"Just saying hi."_

_"Yeah." Ironwood smiled as Glynda leaned down and kissed him on the lips. Ironwood kissed her back, savoring this moment._

_After breaking off the kiss (and peppering in a few smaller kisses to Ironwood's nose and forehead), Glynda leaned back. "What time is it?" Ironwood asked._

_"Mmm...it's 10:30. You needed your sleep. There's plenty of time now that you're home."_

_Ironwood played with Glynda's hair, making her giggle. She then gently made him stop before telling him that she was going to make breakfast for the both of them._

_Ironwood sat up. He watched as Glynda walk backwards, a smile still etched on her face._

_Then, just as she made it to the doorway...an Atlesian Military soldier entered the room. He didn't say a single word. All he did was raise his pistol...and shoot the back of Glynda's head._

_"NOOOOOO-"_

/

/

Ironwood woke with a jolt. _Fucking memories again! But...what the hell was that? Did that...no, that's not how it happened. What the fuck..._

He was restless now. No way was he getting anymore sleep after that dream. Needing to let off some steam, Ironwood stood up and quickly got dressed. He headed to the one place he knew where he could clear his mind. 

* * *

Setting: Construction site.

Time: Night 

**BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!**

Ironwood was back at it with the wall, which was pretty much destroyed at this point. Now, he was just swinging at the rubble.

As he swung, the memories started flooding in. Almost too fast for him to fully comprehend.

**BOOM!**

_"Dad!" James Ironwood-Goodwitch Jr. called out to him as he sat on a plastic unicorn that was connected to the merry-go-round._

**BOOM!**

_"Dad, look!" Madeline Ironwood-Goodwitch called out to him. Like her brother, she was sitting on a plastic horse, enjoying the merry-go-round as it started to turn._

"STOP IT! NO MORE!" 

_James Jr. and Madeline were holding hands as Glynda Goodwitch, who was sitting on a plastic dragon, looked back at her kids, glad that they were enjoying themselves._

James gritted his teeth and continued to swing away. It wasn't working but he had no other way to cope with the memories.

As he continued to swing away, Cardin, Russel, Dove, and Jaune made their way to the construction site. Dove parked the car while Cardin, Russel, and Dove began panicking as they stepped out. 

"This can't be happening," Jaune kept repeating to himself. 

"Give me my fucking gun," Russel shouted at Jaune. Jaune took out the revolver he had on him and handed it to Russel, who snatched it back angrily. 

"Look, I made a mistake, man," Jaune stammered out, "I'm sorry! I-I-I didn't know whether to...I figured-I figured that I bring my license, you know, in case we get stopped by Vale PD! To act normal! I'm sorry Cardin-"

**POW!**

Russel punched Jaune, incredibly furious at how everything was falling apart. Jaune stumbled to the ground, clutching his stomach.

"He's gotta disappear," Russel said, grimly, "They're gonna look for him-"

"-I wouldn't give you up! I promise-"

Jaune was stopped by Cardin, who grabbed him by the neck and shoved him into Dove's car. "The shit that Neopolitan will do to you, man," Cardin growled at Jaune, "You'd be crazy if you didn't." Cardin shoved Jaune down, leading to Russel and Dove kicking Jaune while he was down. 

"We have to do this," Russel said, aiming his gun at Jaune's head. Cardin immediately stopped him. 

"He's gotta disappear!" Russel reiterated. Now, Cardin was starting to get it. 

With a devious thought in mind, Cardin pointed to Dove and said, "Start the cement mixer."

"Are we really doing this?" Dove asked, frowning.

"Start that thing now!" 

At that, Dove ran off to start the mixer. As Dove did his task, Cardin and Russel kneeled down and grabbed Jaune. They dragged him inside as Jaune begged and pleaded for his life.

/

/

Ironwood stopped swinging his hammer. The memories stopped. With full focus, he watched as Jaune was dragged into the building by Cardin and Russel. With Dove turning the cement mixer on, it didn't take a genius to realize what they were doing.

_Well...time to get to work._

/

/

As Cardin and Russel dragged Jaune inside, Jaune managed to get away by shoving Russel aside. He ran up a few floors and grabbed a nearby pipe for self-defense.

Cardin, Russel, and Dove weren't too far behind. They stopped when they saw Jaune ready to defend himself.

"Put it down," Cardin said.

"I'll run!" Jaune pleaded, "I'll run! Just let me go!" 

"Can't happen, Jauney!"

"Just shoot this sucker," Russel shouted. Cardin hesitated. "Forget it, I'll shoot him!"

As Russel raised his gun, Cardin stepped in and shouted, "No! No bullets!" Jaune kept his eye on Dove as Dove tried to rush him. Then, thinking he had a chance, Dove went for a tackle. This led to Jaune swinging the pipe, which landed square on Dove's face. Dove collapsed to the ground as Jaune turned his attention to Cardin and Russel.

Jaune swung but overshot his swing. With his back turned, Cardin was able to step in and knock Jaune down to the ground with a solid pistol whip. CRD then all took turns kicking Jaune while he was on the ground, causing the blonde knight to bleed.

With Jaune subdued, CRD began dragging Jaune to where the mixer was. Jaune pleaded for his life, begging them to let him go. No matter what he said, Cardin, Russel, and Dove all had their minds set for murder.

It didn't take much to shove Jaune out the building, right to where the cement mixer was. Fortunately (or unfortunately), the wet cement broke Jaune's fall. Still, Jaune began to panic as the cement started rising. 

"Cardin! Please! Turn it off! I'm begging you!"

"You brought this on yourself," Cardin coldly said. 

"Shut it off."

Cardin, Russel, and Dove slowly turned around. There he was...James Ironwood, sledgehammer at hand, face permanently stuck in silent anger. 

"Hey look, it's the gimp," Dove joked. Russel chuckled while Ironwood's face didn't budge. 

As if he had been waiting for this moment his whole life, Cardin reached for his gun and walked up to Ironwood. "Tonight just gets better and better-"

Before Cardin could pull the gun out, Ironwood shoved Cardin's arm aside and swung the sledgehammer at his knee. There was an audible _crack_ as Cardin's knee shattered from impact. Russel tried to make a move but was quickly shut down by a sledgehammer strike to the chin. Dove didn't fare no better as he was struck in the side.

Russel tried to get back up but was forced back down by another sledgehammer strike. Dove went for a punch but Ironwood caught his arm and held it in place. With Dove's arm trapped, Ironwood quickly broke it, then shoved the sledgehammer head right into Dove's back. Dove screamed from both major hits.

With Dove effectively out of the fight, Ironwood casually shoved the man aside and turned his attention to Russel. Just as Russel was starting to get back up, Ironwood leaned back...and brought the sledgehammer down with full strength, hitting Russel in the jaw. Russel spat out some blood from the strike. 

_Two dumbasses down...now to get the lead dumbass._

Ironwood walked over to Cardin, who was struggling to crawl away from the fight. Like what he did with Russel, Ironwood reached back and brought the hammer down right onto Cardin's back. He could've sworn that he snapped Cardin's back in half. 

At this point, Ironwood was just doing clean-up. He turned his attention back to Dove, who had gotten back to his feet. His face was covered in blood and it didn't look like he knew where he was. Almost sadistically, Ironwood used the sledgehammer to make Dove face him. As soon as Dove turned around, Ironwood reached back and slammed the sledgehammer right into Dove's face. There was a sickening _crunch_ as Dove's neck snapped. 

Dove, now dead, fell off the building. He landed right into the wet cement, causing Jaune to scream out in fear. 

**BANG!**

Ironwood turned around as Russel, who was hobbling at this point, began firing at him. The first shot hit the sledgehammer, breaking the wooden handle off completely. The next few shots missed completely. To avoid getting hit, Ironwood ducked behind a column. He then decided to just hide as Russel wasted all the remaining ammo in his pistol. 

_Who taught this guy how to shoot?_

"Russel!" Cardin weakly shouted out, "Russel, don't leave me!" His words fell on deaf ears as Russel hobbled out of the room and made his way to the car. 

As Cardin tried to reach for his gun, Ironwood stepped out of the column and kneeled down to grab both Cardin's gun and his arm. He then pulled back hard, quickly breaking Cardin's arm. Cardin screamed out in pain as Ironwood holstered the pistol and left the building to follow after Russel.

Outside, Russel got into the car, hoping to escape the madman coming after him. He didn't make it very far. As soon as he backed up, Ironwood fired a single shot. The shot went through the shotgun seat window, hitting Russel in the head. 

Just like with Dove, Ironwood grabbed Russel's body and shoved him into the cement mixer. Jaune, once again, screamed at the sight of another dead body. 

Ironwood made his way back into the building. With the fight over, he picked up the metal head of the sledgehammer, which was now covered in CRD's blood. 

Cardin whimpered at the sight of the crazed man. "Oh please," he whined, "Please, just let me go, man. Take the liens. Take the liens, man. You don't have to kill me over this. It was him or us!"

Ironwood, unimpressed, looked right into Cardin's eyes. "Where'd it go down?"

"What?"

 _Wrong answer._ Ironwood brought the sledgehammer down, right into Cardin's broken knee. Cardin screamed in pain as Ironwood circled him. 

"Talk," Ironwood said, bluntly.

"I don't know-OWWWWWWW!" Cardin screamed in pain once again as Ironwood began to step on Cardin's broken knee, making the injury even worse. 

"Okay, okay!" Cardin screamed, "It's in the basement of a restaurant! Linello's in Little Atlas!" 

_Appreciate the cooperation._

Cardin continued to whimper as Ironwood made his way to his head. "What are you gonna do?"

To Cardin's horror, Ironwood gestured to his bloody sledgehammer. Echoing Cardin's own words, Ironwood said, "I'm gonna find a home for this."

"NOOOOOOOOOO-"

**BOOM!**

The first strike killed Cardin instantly. The second strike was just to be sure. The third one...just for fun. 

With Cardin gone, Ironwood shoved his body into the mixer. He then made his way downstairs to stop the machine, as well as toss a rope to Jaune. 

_We're not done here. Time to clean this up._

/

/

Jaune could hardly believe it. At this point, he was fighting to stay afloat in the pool of cement. When he saw the rope, he didn't hesitate to climb his way out. 

_I'm alive...I'm alive...thank Oum._

As Jaune caught his breath, he heard Dove's car race out of the area. He wasn't sure who was driving the car and at this point, he didn't care. After catching his breath, Jaune looked down and saw that the rope was attached to something. Upon further investigation, he gasped at what he saw.

The bag of liens from the Neopolitan heist. And on it, a message written in blood that simply said, "LEAVE TOWN."

* * *

Setting: Linello's, the Neopolitan hideout

Time: Few minutes after the heist 

"No one sleeps until we get these guys."

The Neopolitans nodded their heads as their boss gave out orders. 

"Start with this kid, Jaune Arc. My guy in the precinct called with an address in Beacon. He lives with his grandmother. Do what you have to to make him give up the others-"

The lights suddenly went out in the room, catching the criminals off-guard. 

"Brothers. Get the circuit breaker."

"You got it boss," one of the lower-level Neopolitan gangmembers said. 

As the gangmember reached for the lever-

**BANG!**

The ice cream gang began firing in complete darkness, unsure who or what it was that was shooting at them. Several shots rang out as bodies started falling in the dark. As the gunfire died down, a few more stray rounds rang out, as if to double-tap the downed gangmembers.

The Neopolitan leader finally turned the lights on. His hands were shaky as he made his way back to his men. What he saw...

A complete bloodbath. Not a single survivor in his crew. Before he could even panic, he felt a presence behind him. The leader turned around...and was quickly manhandled by Ironwood. Ironwood, using the leader's own gun against him, shot him in the head. The Neopolitan leader died, not knowing who it was that killed him. Ironwood then nonchalantly threw the body aside.

Another mission accomplished. _One hell of a night._

As Ironwood made his way out of the gang hideout, he found that he wasn't pre-occupied with thoughts of retaliation. He wasn't worried about the Jaune Arc kid, nor was he concerned that he just killed three of his co-workers. At that very moment...he was just happy that he was back to doing what he was good at. 

* * *

Setting: Unknown

Time: A few minutes later...

Taiyang Xiao Long was watching the video footage of what went down in Little Atlas. Vale Police surrounded the scene but all the officers on the scene seemed...perplexed. All the Neopolitan gang members inside were dead and it almost seemed like they all killed each other based on how the crime scene looked. 

That wasn't what Taiyang was interested in, though. He rewinded the video several minutes earlier. After letting it play, he saw what he wanted.

A man in raggedy clothes stepped out of the building. Clearly, the man responsible. Excited at seeing this man, Taiyang ran a facial recognition program just to be sure this was the man he was looking for. After a few seconds, he got his answer.

_I knew it. I knew it!_

Taiyang leaned into the screen, sighing happily at the sight of Ironwood walking away from the shootout. 

"Welcome back, James."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Boom! There's the conclusion of the Ironwood-Punisher chapters! I might return to this but I wanna explore other universes. Feel free to let me know if you want some more Punisher. 
> 
> Alright, next up...something completely different.


	5. Sugoroku Fun

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ruby, Weiss, and Blake play a...questionable game.

_Rules of Sugoroku:_

_1) Players move along the board by the roll of a dice._

_2) Every cell has a penalty. The player must perform whatever penalty is listed on the cell._

* * *

_Counterparts_

_1) Ruby Rose as Olivia_

_2) Weiss Schnee as Hanako Honda_

_3) Blake Belladonna as Kasumi Nomura_

* * *

Setting: Empty classroom in Beacon Academy

Time: Afternoon 

Weiss, with a big grin on her face, rolled the dice. _Please give me something good!_ When the dice hit the board, Weiss looked back at Ruby and Blake and shouted, "Six!"

Ruby flashed her a thumbs up and said, "Nice!"

"Okay, well, the penalties haven't been too bad so far. Let's see, six is-"

**PENALTY: have your butt slapped by the other two players**

It was hard to describe the noise that came from Weiss' mouth when she read what the penalty would be. To Ruby and Blake, it sounded like, "Ehhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh". Ruby could've also sworn she saw a cloud of despair form over Weiss' head. 

"Uh, Weiss," Ruby awkwardly said, trying to find a way to cheer her partner up, "That's..."

Although she wasn't saying this out loud, Blake was thinking to herself, "That's got to be the worst one!"

Both Ruby and Blake were ready to just stop the game there...until they saw Weiss get down on all fours. 

"You dolts," Weiss snapped at them, "Hurry up and do it."

Now Blake was really panicking, thinking to herself, "I DON'T WANT TO BE THE ONE TO DO IT, EITHER!"

Feeling very awkward with this whole situation, Ruby walked over to Weiss and kneeled down. She held her hand out, really not wanting to slap her partner's ass. 

"A-Are you sure, Weiss-cream?" Ruby nervously asked. 

Weiss looked back at Ruby. "Y-yeah", she said, equally as nervous. 

_All right...for the game, I guess!_ Ruby raises her hand. Then, with a look of sudden determination on her face, she brings her hand down hard on Weiss' butt. Weiss yelps from the slap.

Immediately, Ruby Rose stood back up. Her face was completely red from embarrassment and she felt the urge to hide inside her hood. "Please don't make weird noises!" 

"But," Weiss said, still surprised at what just happened, "Not even my father has slapped me before!"

"I believe you!" Ruby sighed, her part in this over. She then stepped back and walked over to Blake. "Alright Blakey...go ahead."

_Oh god...please no!_

Blake nervously walked over to Weiss. Seeing just how shaken Weiss was from the first slap, Blake decided to cheat the game. She kneeled down, extended her hand...then she lightly patted Weiss on the butt.

_Well...that was...shockingly easy._

Just as Blake stood up, she heard Weiss, in a serious tone, say, "Blake...you went easy on me, didn't you?"

Blake didn't know how to respond to that. _Is she...actually MAD that I didn't slap the hell out of her?_

"But-"

Suddenly, scaring both Blake and Ruby, Weiss shouted, "-DON'T GIVE ME YOUR EXCUSES, YOU DOLT! HIT ME PROPERLY!"

 _Uh...did Ruby slap Weiss' brains out?_ "But Weiss-"

"-I'M ALREADY PREPARED! RUBY DID IT...YOU CAN DO IT TOO! MAKE IT SOUND REALLY GOOD!"

This game...for some reason...Blake started feeling... _touched._ "Weiss," Blake whispered, amazed at her friend's dedication to the penalty. 

As Blake was lost in thought, Weiss turned to Ruby and stuck her tongue out at her. "Oh my Oum, of course I'm just kidding you dolts! I was just trying to act tough. Please don't slap me hard, I'm kidding-"

As Weiss looked back, she could've sworn that a cloud of dark aura surrounded Blake. Even Ruby must've seen it based on how she was staring at Blake. With tears rolling down her face (Ruby: "Huh, Blake, why are you crying?), Blake raised her hand up and said, "Weiss...I feel your resolve."

**_SMACK!_ **

Ruby let out a loud, "Eep!" as Blake unleashed a MONSTER (some would say, "Grimm-like") slap on Weiss' rear-end, resulting in Weiss screaming at the top of her lungs. It wasn't even a normal-sounding scream from her, it sounded...animalistic. As if Weiss had achieved the next level of pain.

Then, to finish her act...Blake unleashed a machine gun-volley of slaps to Weiss' butt. Weiss' ass was shaken around as Blake ended her slapping-spree. Blake even cracked her knuckles to show off just how serious those slaps were. 

_What the hell even is this game?_ Ruby Rose thought this as her face was turning blue from trying not to laugh at her partner's predicament. 

Meanwhile, Weiss Schnee had collapsed to the floor. She was grabbing her butt, trying to soothe the pain. "MY ASS IS DESTROYED!" Weiss screeched. Despite all the pain she was in, she was glad that Yang Xiao Long wasn't here to record her saying 'my ass is destroyed' on her scroll. 

As for Blake...the dark aura that developed around her was still there. Kneeling down to where Weiss was, Blake, in a soft-yet-intimidating tone, said, "...and that's what you wanted, was it not?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Based on: Asobi Asobase, episode 8 (the Sugoroku/Punishment game episode) 
> 
> This was a short one, mainly because I wanted to do a light-hearted chapter after two heavy ones. Also, I wanted to feature the main girls since none of RWBY appeared in the first two chapters.
> 
> Oh, by the way, feel free to leave me suggestions on write-ups you want to see. It'd be fun to see what you all would like for future chapters.


	6. Still a Bit Stiff

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Super-cop, "bad girl" Winter Schnee goes head-to-head with her arch-nemesis; bureaucracy

**Police Constable Winter Schnee.**

**Born and schooled in Atlas.**

**Graduated Atlas Academy in 1993 with a double first in politics and sociology.**

**Attended the Vale College of Specialist Training.**

**Displayed great aptitude in field exercises, notably in urban pacification and riot control.**

**Academically excelled in theoretical coursework and final year examinations.**

**Received the Baton of Honour.**

**Graduated with distinction into the Vale Police Service.**

**Quickly established an effectiveness and popularity with the community.**

**Proceeded to improve skill base with courses in advanced driving and advanced cycling.**

**Became heavily involved in a number of extra vocational activities.**

**To this day, holds the net record for the hundred-meter-dash.**

**In 2001, began active duty with the renowned HH-19 (Hunters/Huntresses) armed responses unit.**

**Received a bravery award for her efforts in the resolution of Operation Dust-Down.**

**In the last twelve months, has received nine special commendations.**

**Achieved the highest arrest record for any officer in the Vale Service.**

**And sustained three injuries in the line of duty. Most recently, in December when wounded by a man dressed as Father **Nondescript Holiday.****

* * *

Setting: Vale Police Department, Sergeant Marrow Amin's office

Time: Afternoon

Winter Schnee was sitting across the desk of Sgt. Marrow Amin. She was nervous since she wasn't sure what the reason was for this sudden meeting.

_"Winter, go see the Sergeant right now. He says it's urgent!"_

_"Did he say what the reason was?"_

_"No...just go!"_

As she pondered what the reason for this meeting could be, Marrow put his files down and smiled at her. This slightly helped her calm her nerves.

"Hello Winter," Marrow said.

"Hello Sergeant," Winter replied back. _So far, so normal._

"How's the hand?"

"Still a bit stiff."

Marrow took in an exaggerated breath, as if he was about to tell her something big. Winter tried not to show it but she was dying to know what was on his mind.

"It can get awfully hairy out there," Marrow said, "I'm surprised you weren't snapped up sooner for a nice desk job. That's what I did."

"I prefer to think my office is out on the street."

Marrow chuckled at that. "Indeed you do. Your arrest record is 400% higher than any other officer! Which is why it's high time that such- **skills** -were put to better use!"

Winter raised an eyebrow at this. _Oh...could it be..._

Marrow leaned in. With a smile, he said, "We're making you Specialist!"

_So this is what this is. A promotion! Guess I was overthinking things._

"I see," Winter responded, trying her best to not look excited.

However, just as Winter started letting herself enjoy her promotion, she heard Marrow mutter something that she couldn't quite hear. It was something about the location of her new post.

"In where, sorry?" 

"In Patch!"

Winter's face dropped at that. _Patch?! PATCH?! But...but...that's just forests and fishermen! That's where you go to retire!_

"Sir," Winter said, cautiously, "That's...that's...really, Patch? The quiet island that's far away from all the major cities?"

"Yes," Marrow said, grinning as he did, "I heard it's a lovely place."

"Isn't there a Specialist's position here in the City of Vale?"

"No."

"Can I remain here as a PC?"

"Noooo."

Winter's eye started twitching. "Do I have any choice in this-"

"Nooooooooo."

Winter was just about to start cursing the man out but she stayed calm. No use pissing off the Sergeant of all people. "Sergeant Amin," Winter said, trying to sound as rational as possible, "I kind of like it here."

"Well, you've always wanted to transfer to the islands!"

"In twenty years or so, yes-"

"-well done, you!"

"But wait, hang on, I don't remember telling you that!"

"Uh, yes...you did. You said..." Marrow flipped open a file on his desk and quickly turned to his intended page. Whispering, he said, "'I'd love to settle down in the country sometime, Qrow.'" 

Winter's eye twitched again. _That was a PRIVATE conversation! And I wasn't even being serious with Qrow! He doesn't want to settle down in Patch! And...WE'RE NOT EVEN TOGETHER ANYMORE!_

"I'd like to talk to the Inspector," Winter said, her tone getting angrier. 

Marrow sighed. "You can speak to the Inspector, but I can promise you, she will tell you exactly the same thing as I have." 

/

/

Inspector Harriet Bree took a seat next to Marrow, having the same cheeky smile on her face that Marrow did. After knowing what was going on with this sham promotion, Winter didn't feel any comfort from their fake smiles.

"Hello Winter," Harriet said, "How's the hand?"

"It's still a bit stiff." 

"And how are things at home?"

"I'm...sorry, ma'am?"

"How's Qrow Branwen?"

Winter sighed at this. _Maybe in another life, it would've worked out. Guess we're both just too married to our jobs._

"We're no longer together, ma'am."

Harriet nodded at that. "Right. Then where are you living?"

"She's staying at the Huntress Headquarters, ma'am." Marrow said to Harriet. 

"With the recruits?" Harriet asked.

"Yeah, she's living out of cardboard boxes."

At that, Harriet's face lit up. "Well, then, you're packed already!" 

Winter's face dropped again. _So even the Inspector's in on this sham!_

"Winter, we're offering you a smashing position with a delightful cottage in a lovely little place that I think has won Island of the Year...honestly, I don't know how many times. It'll be good for you!"

Winter's mouth was open. She wanted to protest but didn't know what to say to either of them. How could you argue against this? "I...I don't really know what to say."

"Yes?" Harriet slyly suggested.

"Yes, thank you?" Marrow followed up. 

Winter frowned. _No...I have to take this one more step._ "No, I'm sorry. I'm gonna have to-"

Finally, Harriet Bree's fake smile dropped. "You want to...take this higher?" Harriet asked, gesturing her finger to the Chief Inspector's office.

"Yes. Yes I do." 

"You want me to bother the Chief Inspector with this?" 

"Yes."

"You want me to get the Chief Inspector to come all the way down here?"

"...yes, I do."

Harriet sighed. "Okay." As Harriet reached over for her scroll, she stopped halfway and turned to the room right next to theirs. "Ozpin!" Harriet shouted. As she did, Chief Inspector Ozpin entered the room. Immediately, Winter, Harriet, and Marrow stood to attention. 

"Hello Winter," Ozpin said, "How's the hand?"

"Still a bit stiff," Marrow replied. Winter rolled her eyes at Marrow taking her line. 

"Chief Inspector," Winter started. Before she could air out her grievances, Ozpin motioned for her to stop.

"Take a seat," he said. Winter sat back down, eager to hear what Ozpin had to say. 

"Now, I know what you're going to say," Ozpin continued, "But the fact is, you've been making us all look bad." 

_...Huh? Huh?_ Winter felt like she was being pranked. No way was this happening.

"I'm...sorry, sir?" Winter said, confused.

"Of course, we all appreciate your efforts, but you've been rather letting the side down." 

"It's all about being a team player, Winter" Harriet chimed in.

"You can't be the Sheriff of Vale!" Marrow said with a smirk. 

"If we let you carry on running round town, you'll continue to be exceptional, and we can't have that," Ozpin said, "You'll put us all out of a job."

Now...she was pissed. All those times she tried to pull back...it was time to let these _imbeciles_ know her real feelings on this situation.

"With respect, sir," Winter growled, "You can't just make people disappear." 

Ozpin shrugged at that. "Uh...yes, I can," Ozpin said, "I'm the Chief Inspector."

"Well, however you spin this, there's one thing you haven't taken into account. And that's what the 'team' is gonna make of this!"

Winter stood up and tried to inform the rest of the Vale Police Department what the higher-ups were trying to do. However, as soon as she stepped out of the room...she saw that the entire staff had set up a 'going away' party in her name.

It really was the entire department against her.

_Well...shit._

* * *

Setting: Crime scene

Time: Sometime later on that day

The Vale PD forensics team were busy at work, taking photos and collecting evidence from what appeared to be a brutal homicide. As they moved through the room, forensics agent Qrow Branwen received a call on his scroll. Annoyed, he stopped what he was doing and answered the call.

"Hello," he said, already knowing that it was Winter on the other end.

"Qrow, it's me," Winter said.

"I know, I'm at work."

"I know, I'm outside."

Qrow raised an eyebrow and immediately turned to the window. Sure enough, there was Winter Schnee. She had a sheepish look on her face. _Bad day, huh? Bad enough that you had to see me in person?_

"What's the situation?" Winter asked.

Qrow sighed. "You know the situation, we've been over this."

"No, I...I meant here." Winter awkwardly pointed to the blood all over the walls. 

"Two people involved, distinct signs of a struggle. Complete mess."

"Uh...you are talking about the crime scene, right?"

"Winter, what do you want?"

"Well, I have something important to tell you and I didn't want to do it over the...scroll." After realizing the irony that she was telling Qrow that she didn't want to talk to him over the scroll...while on the scroll...Winter hung up and entered the building. 

Moving her way into the crime scene, she stepped over to the first forensics agent she came across. Winter said, "Qrow...I've been transferred. I'm moving away for a while." 

The forensics agent dully looked at her and said, "I'm not Qrow."

_Oops...well, it's not my fault that I can't see your faces!_

Without skipping a beat, Winter turned away from the random agent and faced Qrow. After making sure it was really him, Winter said, "Qrow, I've been transferred. I'm moving away for a while-"

"-I know. Thumbelina Peach told me."

Awkwardly, Peach walked by Winter and Qrow and said, "Hello there" before moving on.

"Well...I wanted to tell you in person," Winter continued, "And there's no reason we can't be civil with each other. It's not that long ago we were talking about getting married."

Qrow rolled his eyes at her. "Yes, but you were already married to the force, weren't you?"

Qrow eyed Winter, wanting to see how she'd react. Instead of yelling at him, she instead said, "...we're actually supposed to call it 'the service' now. Official vocab guidelines state that 'force' is too aggressive-"

"-see, it's only ever about the job with you. It's all you care about!"

"That's not true."

"No, you're right. You do have that rubber plant."

Winter sighed at the mention of her favorite item in her house. "Actually...it's an Atlesian Peace Lily-"

"-you just can't switch off, Ice Queen! And until you find a person you care about more than your job, you never will."

At that, Winter had to look down on the ground. _Maybe he's right about me there..._

Feeling guilty about upsetting Winter, Qrow tried to backtrack. "Besides," he said, "You were the one who suggested we take a break."

"Yes, well," Winter said, "Guilty people often make the first move."

"Actually, there's something I need to tell you-"

"-you're seeing someone else."

At that, Qrow's eyes lit up. He was shocked that she got it right away.

"Yes, how did you-"

"-is it Peach?"

Qrow scoffed at that. "No. Does Peach look like the kind of person I'd go out with?" (Peach: "Well screw you too, bird guy") "...it's Ann Greene."

As if on cue, Ann Greene, still in her forensic agents uniform, turned around and said, "Hello there" to both Winter and Qrow.

Winter nodded at that. She was sad but understood that it was for the better. "I see," she said. 

Qrow sighed, still hating the sight of Winter feeling sad. "Oh, Ice Queen-"

"-you do realize that window was broken from the inside?" Winter suddenly interrupted as she pointed to the broken window in the room. 

And just like that, Qrow went back to rolling his eyes at his ex. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Based on: Hot Fuzz (2007)
> 
> Hopefully, y'all understood the super-cop/bad girl references. If not...watch the movie!


	7. Whamburger with Cheese

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nora and Ren decide to break some legs for liens while Neptune and Sun pay a visit to Cardin...

* * *

Setting: Diner

Time: Morning 

"Forget it, it's too risky."

Nora pouted at Ren as he lit a cigarette and smoked it. By how their table looked, Nora had just finished all of her pancakes while Ren was almost done with his vegetable omelette. 

"I'm through doing that shit," Ren finished as he tuck away his lighter and blew some smoke into the air. 

Nora glumly sighed. "You always say that," she pointed out, "It's the same thing every time. 'I'm through, never again, too dangerous.'" 

"I know, that's what I always say. I'm always right too-"

"-but you forget about it in a day or two." Nora smirked as Ren rolled his eyes at her. 

"Yeah, well, the days of me forgetting are over, and the days of me remembering have just begun." 

"You know, when you go on like this, do you know what you sound like?"

"I sound like a sensible fucking man, that's what I sound like-"

"-YOU SOUND LIKE A DUCK! _Quack, quack, quack, quack, quack, quack._ " 

Ren resisted the urge to facepalm as Nora just relished the look of annoyance on her partner's face. 

"Well take heart, because you're never gonna have to hear it again. Because since I'm never gonna do it again, you're never gonna have to hear me quack about how I'm never gonna do it again."

"After tonight?"

Nora raised her eyebrows at Ren nodded, seeing her point.

"Correct. I got all tonight to quack."

As Ren leaned back in his seat, a waitress came by asking if they needed more coffee. Nora politely asked for more while Ren declined. As the waitress left (and Ren made sure she was out of sight before he continued his point), Ren leaned back in.

Ren said, "I mean the way it is now, you're taking the same fucking risk as when you rob a bank. You take more of a risk. Banks are easier! Valean banks aren't supposed to stop you in anyway, during a robbery. They're insured, why should they care? You don't even need a gun or your semblance in a Valean bank. I heard about this guy, walked into a Valean bank with a scroll and handed the scroll to the teller. The guy on the other end of the scroll said, 'We got this guy's little girl, and if you don't give him all your liens, we're gonna kill her'."

Nora, who had been pouring cream and sugar into her coffee as she listened to Ren's story, looked at him at that last part. "Did it work," she asked, genuinely curious. 

"Fucking A it worked, that's what I'm talking about! Knucklehead walks in a bank with a scroll...not a pistol, not a shotgun, not using some high-powered semblance...but a fucking scroll! Cleans the place out, and they don't even lift a fucking finger."

"Did they hurt the little girl?" Nora sheepishly asked. Ren just shrugged, not knowing the answer and not really caring.

"I don't know. There probably never was a little girl in the first place. The point of the story isn't the little girl. The point of the story is...they robbed the bank with a scroll."

Nora eyed Ren carefully. Ren looked back at her, wondering if she understood the point he was trying to make.

As Ren was about to ask her what she was thinking, Nora blurted out, "So...you wanna rob banks?"

Ren sighed. _Well...that was not the worst answer ever but it was still off._

"Nora, I'm not saying I want to rob banks, I'm just illustrating that if we did, it would be easier than what we've been doing."

"So no more liquor stores?"

"What have we been talking about? Yeah! No. More. Liquor. Stores. Besides, it ain't the gig it used to be. Too many foreigners own liquor stores. Vacuans, Menagerians, and they can't fucking speak English. You tell them to empty out the register, and they don't know what it fucking means. They make it too personal. We keep on, one of those sub-human, beast motherfuckers gonna make us kill them."

Nora nodded her head at that, hating the idea of killing someone. She may rob people for a living, but she was no murderer. "I'm not gonna kill anybody, Renny," she said as she laid her head down on the table. 

"I don't want to kill anybody either, but they'll probably put us in a situation where it's us or them. And if it's not the animals, it's these old Atlesian, Schnee-types who've owned their store for fifteen fucking generations. You got Grandpa Irving sitting behind the counter with a fucking magnum in his hand! Try walking into one of those places with nothing but a scroll, see how far it gets you. Fuck it, forget it, we're out of it."

At that, Nora sat up, unhappy at their current prospects. Having dropped out of Beacon Academy and with honest work being hard to come by these days, this was the one way she could sustain herself. "Well then, what then, day jobs?" Nora asked, hating the idea of siting behind a desk for hours on end.

Ren shook his head. He felt the same way. "Not this life," he simply said.

"Well, what then?"

As she said that, a smirk formed on Ren's face. Before he could answer Nora, he grabbed his coffee mug and called for the waitress for a refill. "Garçon, coffee!" He then turned to Nora and whispered, "This place."

Before Ren could continue, the waitress came by with a frown on her face. As she refilled Ren's cup, she simply told him, "'Garçon' means boy." As she walked away, Nora made a mental note to break that woman's legs later. 

Nora then turned to Ren, a bit annoyed at his plan. " _This place_...a coffee shop?!"

Ren smirked again, as if to say that he thought this through and he could convince her of his plan.

"What's wrong with that?" Ren asked Nora, "Nobody ever robs restaurants...why not? Bars, liquor stores, dust stations...you get your head blown off sticking up one of them. Restaurants, on the other hand, you catch with their pants down. They're not expecting to get robbed, or not as expecting anyway."

As soon as he finished his argument, the gears in Nora's head started rotating. Suddenly, the idea didn't sound as bad. It was actually starting to sound...brilliant. 

"I bet you could cut down on the hero factor in a place like this." Nora said, nodding along as Ren smiled at her, knowing that he was winning her over. 

"Correct. Same with banks, these places are insured. The manager...he don't give a fuck, they're just trying to get you out the door before you start plugging the diners. Waitresses, _fucking_ _forget_ _it_ , no way they're taking a bullet for the register. Busboy, some monkey-man, getting paid a dollar fifty a hour, do you think he'll really give a fuck you're stealing from the owner. Customers are sitting there with food in their mouths, they don't know what's going on. One minute they're having a Patch omelette, next minute, somebody's sticking a gun in their face."

Nora eyed Ren, impressed. 

"See, I got the idea...last liquor store we stuck up. Remember all those customers kept coming in?"

"Yeah?"

"Then you got the idea to take everybody's wallets."

"Uh-huh."

"Now that was a good idea."

Nora blushed at that. "Thank you."

"We made more from the wallets than we did the register."

"Yes, we did."

"Now...a lot of people go to restaurants."

It finally clicked for Nora. Her face showed it all, from completely hesitant to completely onboard with Ren's idea. "A lot of wallets," she said, savoring the idea of all those liens she could take. 

"Pretty smart, huh?"

Nora smiled, her face still reading that she was in love with Ren's idea (or that she was just in love with Ren). "Pretty smart. Okay, I'm ready, let's do it, right here, right now. Come on!" 

Ren gave himself a mental high-five as he reached for his revolver. It was showtime. 

"All right," Ren said, "Same as last time. You're crowd control, I handle the employees."

"Got it." 

Before going to work, Ren and Nora leaned in and kissed. Although they were at "work", it still felt like they were on a date. 

"I love you, pumpkin," Nora chirped.

"I love you, honey bunny," Ren said. He then climbed up on top of his seat, took his gun out and aimed it at all the restaurant patrons. "NOW EVERYBODY BE COOL, THIS IS A ROBBERY!" 

Nora, following Ren's lead, took her own gun out and did the same. "ANY OF YOU FUCKING PRICKS MOVE, AND I'LL EXECUTE EVERY MOTHERFUCKING LAST ONE OF YOU!"

* * *

**AO3 FILMS PRESENTS**

**A SCHNEE FILM COMPANY**

**AND**

**ROOSTER TEETHS PRODUCTION**

**A FILM BY**

**WORD-WARRIOR**

**PULP**

**FICTION**

**STARRING:**

**NEPTUNE VASILIAS** **(counterpart: Vincent Vega)**

**SUN WUKONG (counterpart: Jules Winnfield)**

**NEOPOLITAN (counterpart: Mia Wallace)**

**GLYNDA GOODWITCH (counterpart: Winston Wolfe)**

**LIE REN (counterpart: Ringo / Pumpkin)**

**NORA VALKYRIE (counterpart: Yolanda / Honey-Bunny)**

**WEISS SCHNEE (counterpart: Fabienne)**

**ROMAN TORCHWICK (counterpart: Marcellus Wallace)**

**MERCURY BLACK (counterpart: Lance)**

**EMERALD SUSTRAI (counterpart: Jody)**

**OZPIN (counterpart: Captain Koons)**

**and**

**YANG XIAO LONG (counterpart: Butch Coolidge)**

**co-starring**

**HEI XIONG 'JUNIOR' (counterpart: Paul the Bartender)**

**CINDER FALL (counterpart: Trudi)**

**ARTHUR WATTS (counterpart: Zed)**

**TYRIAN CALLOWS (counterpart: Maynard)**

**VELVET SCARLATINA (counterpart: Esmeralda Villalobos)**

**FOX ALISTAIR (counterpart: Marvin)**

**RUBY ROSE (counterpart: Raquel)**

**JAMES IRONWOOD (counterpart: Jimmy)**

**CARDIN WINCHESTER (counterpart: Brett)**

* * *

Setting: Downtown City of Vale, streets 

Time: Morning

Another day in Vale. Traffic was light, thanks to the day still being early, and people were on their way to work. Two of those people on their way to their "job" are Neptune Vasilias and Sun Wukong. They were both wearing the same suits, but this wasn't for a business meeting. No, they were going to meet a friend, a business partner. And the reason? To let that business partner know what their boss, Roman Torchwick, had decided for their "future".

As the sounds of funk played on Sun's radio, Sun turned to Neptune with an excited grin on his face. Neptune had just come back from a vacation in Atlas and he was curious about how the Atlesians lived.

"Okay, so, tell me again about the hash bars," Sun asked.

"So what do you want to know?" Neptune replied back.

"Hash is legal there, right?"

"Yeah, it's legal, but it ain't a hundred percent legal. I mean, you can't just walk into a restaurant, roll a joint, and start puffing away. I mean, they want you to smoke in your home or certain designated places."

"And those are hash bars?"

"Yeah, it breaks down like this, okay: it's legal to buy it, it's legal to own it and, if you're the proprietor of a hash bar, it's legal to sell it. It's legal to carry it, but that doesn't really matter because – get a load of this – if you get stopped by the cops in Mantle, it's illegal for them to search you. That's a right that the cops in Mantle don't have!"

Sun chuckled loudly at that. He did love his hash. 

"Oh man, I'm going! That's all there is to it, I'm fucking going."

Neptune and Sun high-fived at that. 

"See, I knew you'd dig this the most," Neptune said with a smirk, "But you know what the funniest thing about Atlas is?"

"What?"

"It's the little differences. I mean, they got the same shit over there that we got here but there, it's just a little different."

Sun perked up at that. "Examples?"

"Alright, in Mantle, you can walk into a movie theatre and buy a beer. And I don't mean in just like a paper cup either, I mean like a glass of beer. And in Atlas City, you can buy a beer at WcDonald's. Also, you know what they call a Quarter Pounder with Cheese in Atlas City?"

"They don't call it a Quarter Pounder with Cheese?"

"Nah, they got the metric system over there, they wouldn't know what the fuck a Quarter Pounder is."

"Uh...so what do they call it then?"

Neptune chuckled at what he was about to say. "They call it...a Royale with Cheese."

Sun nodded his head, liking the sound of that. "'Royale with Cheese'. Hmm...what'd they call a Big Wac?"

"Big Wac's a Big Wac, but they call it Le Big Wac."

Sun chuckled again, enjoying all the tiny Atlesian changes to things he knew. " _Le Big Wac..._ ha! What'd they call a Mhopper?"

"Eh, I don't know, I didn't go into Whamburger Pharaoh."

 _Aw...that sucks._ Sun just shrugged it off, happy to at least know about the WcDonald's changes. 

"Oh, you know what they put on French fries in Mantle instead of ketchup," Neptune asked Sun, his face slightly cringing at the answer. 

"What?"

"Mayonnaise."

Sun cringed intensely, not wanting the image of disgusting mayonnaise being anywhere near his French fries. " _Oumdamn!"_

"I've seen them do it, man, they fucking drown them in that shit-"

"-yuck!"

* * *

Setting: Cardin's apartment, ground floor 

Time: A few minutes later

Sun opened the trunk of his car and grabbed his pistol. Neptune did the same, making sure the gun was fully loaded and ready to be used.

Sun groaned as he remembered the details of the job. "We should have shotguns for this kind of deal."

"How many up there?" Neptune asked.

"Three or four."

"That's counting our guy?"

"I'm not sure."

"So that means there could be up to five guys up there?"

"It's possible."

Now Neptune was groaning. As he closed the trunk, Neptune muttered, "We should have fucking shotguns."

/

/

Walking their way into the apartment, Neptune turned to Sun with a question in mind. "So what's her name again?"

Sun instantly knew what he was asking for. The same person he was asking about ever since he got back from his vacation in Atlas. Roman Torchwick's wife, Neopolitan. It surprised Sun that he was so curious. The problem was, Neptune never told him why he was interested in Neo so much. For Sun, he wondered if it was actual curiosity...or if he was just being a womanizing fool once again. _But she's married! Damn Neptune, please don't let that be the real reason!_

"Neo," Sun said.

"Neo...how did Roman and her meet?"

"Uh...I don't know, however people meet people. I know she used to be an actress."

"Oh really, she ever do anything I would've seen?"

"I think her biggest deal was that she starred in a pilot?"

Neptune's eyebrows furrowed at this, confused at what Sun just mentioned. "Pilot...what's a pilot?"

"Well, you know the shows on TV?"

"...I don't watch TV."

Sun stopped walking and turned to Neptune, his eyebrow raised at what Neptune just admitted.

"Yes, but you're aware that there's an invention called television, and on that invention, they show shows, right?"

Neptune rolled his eyes. "Yeah."

"Well, the way they pick the shows on TV is they make one show, and that show's called a pilot. And they show that one show to the people who pick the shows, and on the strength of that one show, they decide if they want to make more shows. Some get chosen and become TV programs, and some don't, and become nothing. She starred in one of the ones that became nothing." 

Neptune nodded at that explanation and the two men made their way into the building. After Sun clicked the button for the elevator, he turned to Neptune and said, "Do you remember Fennec Albain? Half-human, half-fox...used to call him 'Fenny Rocky Horror'?" 

Neptune nodded, the name sounding a little familiar. "Yeah maybe...big ears, right?"

"Now I wouldn't go so far as to call out the brother's big ears. I mean, what's the animal gonna do, he's half-fox."

"I think I know who you mean. So what about him?"

Sun's face dropped as he started remembering what happened to Fennec. "Well...Roman fucked his ass up good. And word around the campfire is it was on account of Roman Torchwick's wife."

The elevator opened and Sun and Neptune walked in. Neptune, still curious, looked over to Sun and asked, "So what'd he do, fuck her?"

"No, no, no, no, no, no, nothing that bad."

"Well then what then?"

"He gave her a foot massage." 

Neptune gave Sun a weird look, expecting worse. "A foot massage, that's it? So what did Roman do?"

"Sent a couple of cats over to his place. They took him out on his patio...threw his ass over the balcony. Animal fell four stories. They had this garden at the bottom, enclosed in glass like a greenhouse...animal fell through that. Since then, he's kinda developed a speech impediment."

"...that's a damn shame."

The elevator opened and Neptune and Sun made their way to Cardin's apartment. As they walked, Neptune decided to keep the conversation going. He was oddly invested in this.

"Still, I have to say, you play with matches, you get burned," Neptune coldly stated as if it were a fact.

"What do you mean?" Sun asked, surprised.

"You don't be giving Roman Torchwick's new bride a foot massage."

"You don't think he overreacted?"

"Fennec probably didn't expect Roman to react the way he did, but he had to expect a reaction."

"It was a foot massage, a foot massage is nothing. I give my mother a foot massage!"

"It's laying your hands in a familiar way on Roman Torchwick's new wife. I mean...is it as bad as eating her pussy out, no...but you're in the same fucking ballpark."

 _Okay, now that's some bullshit._ Sun couldn't even pretend to agree with Neptune as he stopped walking to face Neptune. 

"Whoa, whoa whoa, stop right there. Now eating a bitch out and giving a bitch a foot massage ain't even the same fucking thing."

"It's not, It's the same ballpark-"

"-ain't no fucking ballpark neither! Now look, maybe your method of massage differs from mine...but touching his lady's feet, and sticking your tongue in the holiest of holies ain't the same fucking ballpark, it ain't the same league...hell, it ain't even the same fucking sport! Foot massages don't mean shit!"

"Have you ever given a foot massage?"

Sun scoffed at that. "Don't be talking to me about foot massages - I'm the foot fucking master."

"You've given a lot of them?"

"Shit yeah! I got my technique down and everything, I don't be tickling them or nothing."

Neptune took one step forward and, in a serious tone, asked, "...would you give a guy a foot massage?"

Silence. Sun's smile immediately dropped into a frown while Neptune stared at him, waiting for his response. Neptune was trying his hardest not to laugh.

After a few seconds, Sun, in the harshest tone he could do, said, "Fuck you."

Sun then turned around and started walking towards Cardin's apartment again. Grinning, Neptune kept pace, silently laughing to himself at Sun's reaction.

"So," Neptune said with a grin, "You've given a lot?"

"Fuck. You."

"You know, I am kinda tired, I could use a foot massage myself-"

"-Yo, yo, yo, you best back off, I'm getting pissed off here."

Neptune chuckled again and dropped the subject. 

The two men reached the front door to Cardin's apartment. Before either of them could knock, Neptune checked his watch to make sure they were on schedule.

"What time we got?" Sun asked.

"Uh...7:22 in the morning."

"Eh, it ain't quite time. Come on, let's hang back."

Neptune and Sun then moved away from the door to wait until it was their time to work. As they waited for the appointed time, Sun decided to steer their conversation back to the original point. Something just...didn't feel right with what happened to Fennec Albain. _They nearly killed this guy...over a stupid foot massage? Come on, where's the sense in that!_

"Look," Sun said, his tone more serious than before, "Just because I wouldn't give no man a foot massage, don't make it right for Roman to throw Fennec off a building into a glass-motherfucking-house, fucking up the way the animal talks. That shit ain't right, man. Motherfucker do that shit to me, he better paralyze my ass, because I'd kill that motherfucker, you know what I'm saying-"

"-I ain't saying he was right, but you're saying a foot massage don't mean nothing, and I'm saying it does. Now I've given a million ladies a million foot massages and they all meant something. We act like they don't, but they do. That's what's so fucking cool about them. There's this sensuous thing going on where you don't talk about it, but you know it and she knows it...fucking Roman knew it...and Fennec should've fucking better known known better. I mean...that's his fucking wife, man. He ain't gonna have a sense of humor about that shit. You know what I'm saying?"

Even though Sun wanted to disagree...he couldn't help but recognize that Neptune's argument sounded convincing. He nodded, seeing his point-of-view.

"That's an interesting point...all right, let's get into character."

Neptune nodded and the two men made their way back to the door. 

As the two men waited for Cardin's people to open the door, Neptune once again brought up the same question from before.

"So what's her name again?" Neptune asked. This time, Sun was getting concerned about his partner's interest in their boss' wife.

"Neo. Hey, why are you so interested in big man's wife?" Sun said.

"Well, Roman's leaving for Wind Path in Mistral, so he wants me to take care of Neo while he's gone."

 _Uh...that sounds...highly suspicious_. "You mean...take care of her?" Sun said as he pointed fingers to his head. Recognizing the implication, Neptune quickly denied it.

"No, no! I mean, take her out. Show her a good time, make sure she don't get lonely."

"You're gonna be taking Neopolitan out on a date?" Sun said, a look of disbelief on his face as he did.

"It is not a date. You know, it's like when you and your buddy's wife go to a movie or something. It's just...good company, that's all."

Sun sighed. _So he's not being a womanizer...for now. I mean, this is Neptune._ Sun glared at him, not buying Neptune's supposedly platonic intentions.

"It's not a date," Neptune said once again, "It's definitely not a date." 

* * *

Setting: Cardin's apartment

Time: A few seconds later

The door opened and Sun and Neptune watched as Fox Alistair stepped away from them. Inside, the two men could see Cardin Winchester sitting in the middle of the room, enjoying some fast food. Sky Lark was lying down on a couch a few feet away from Cardin. Sun and Neptune made their way inside, with Sun closing the door behind him.

"Hey fellas," Sun said, trying to sound as non-threatening as possible, "How you boys doing?"

Sky Lark made a move to stand up but Sun quickly gestured for him to relax. "Hey, keep chilling!" he said. Lark didn't look convinced but he relaxed. 

Sun then began addressing all three men who were in the apartment. "You know who we are?" Sun asked, "We're associates of your business partner, Roman Torchwick. You do remember your business partner, don't you?"

Cardin nodded weakly at that.

Sun, wanting to keep the mood friendly, then said, "Now let me take a wild guess here." He then pointed to Cardin and said, "You're Cardin, right?"

"Yeah."

"I thought so. You remember your business partner, Roman Torchwick, don't you Cardin?"

"Uh...yeah, I remember him." Cardin was starting to sweat.

"Good. Looks like Neptune and I caught you boys at breakfast. Sorry about that. What'cha having?"

"Uh...wh-wh-whamburgers-"

"-whamburgers! The cornerstone of any nutritious breakfast! What kind of whamburgers?"

"Uh, ch-ch-cheeseburgers-"

"-no, no, no, I meant where did you get them? WcDonald's, Dusty's, Schnee in the Box...where?"

"The Shallow Sea Burger-"

"-oh, Shallow Sea Burger! That's that Menagerian burger joint. I hear they got some tasty burgers! Never had one myself, how are they?"

"Um...they're uh...they're good."

"You mind if I try one of yours?" Sun then gestured to Cardin's burger, which was laying in the middle of his desk. "This is yours here, right?"

Still feeling nervous, Cardin pushed his burger towards Sun. "Go right ahead."

At that, Sun picked up the Shallow Sea Burger and took a big bite. His eyes lit up, surprised at how good it was. "Mhmm! This is a tasty burger! Hey Neptune, you ever had a Shallow Sea Burger?"

Neptune nodded his head no. At this point, he had made his way to the kitchen area and began looking through all the drawers and cabinets.

"You want a bite, they're real tasty!"

"Eh...ain't hungry."

"Well, if you like whamburgers, give them a try sometime. Me, I can't usually get them because my girlfriend's a vegetarian. Which pretty much makes me a vegetarian. But I do love the taste of a good burger, mmph. Hey, Cardin...you know what they call a Quarter Pounder with Cheese in Atlas?"

Cardin didn't know how to respond to that, so he simply said, "No."

"Tell him, Neptune!"

"Royale with Cheese."

"Hmm...Royale with Cheese. You know why they call it that?"

Cardin, not sure why but willing to take a wild guess, simply said, "Because of the metric system?"

Sun leaned back, faking being impressed with Cardin's answer. "Check out the big brain on Cardin! You a smart motherfucker, that's right...the metric system."

Sun dropped the burger onto the table and pointed to the soda cup next to it. "What's in this?" Sun asked.

"People Like Grapes."

"Oooh, People Like Grapes, good. You mind if I have some of your tasty beverage to wash this down with?"

"Sure, go right ahead." Quickly, Sun grabbed the soda and began drinking. He didn't take a break once and managed to finish the soda completely in one go. "Ahh...that hit the spot." Sun then placed the empty soda cup down and wiped his hands of the burger crumbs that were on them. 

Turning his attention to Sky Lark, Sun walked over to him and said, "You, 'A Flock of Cardinals', you know why we're here?"

Lark nervously shook his head for yes.

"Why don't you tell my man Neptune where you got the shit hid at."

Suddenly, Fox Alistair pointed to the kitchen, trying to help out. "It's over there-"

"-I DON'T REMEMBER ASKING YOU AN OUMDAMN THING." Sun's sudden outburst scared Fox and he quietly stepped back, hoping to not piss him off even further. For Cardin and Lark, the sudden 180 in his tone threw them off, making them even more nervous than before.

"You were saying?" Sun said, breaking the silence.

"It's in the cupboard," Lark told Neptune, turning his head slightly to follow Neptune's movements. As Neptune went over to the cupboards, Lark then said, "No, the one by your knees." Neptune quickly corrected his mistake and kneeled down to look through the bottom cupboards. Lark turned his attention back to Sun, who was still glaring at Fox.

A tense silence settled in as Sun, Fox, Lark, and Cardin waited for Neptune to find the "stash". After pushing some pots and pans away, Neptune finally stumbled across the treasure; a black briefcase. He took it out, placed it on the counter and started plugging away at the code.

**6...6...6**

The briefcase sprung open, showering Neptune with a gold light. He stared back at the treasure, examining it in all its glory. It was Roman's ultimate treasure, more valuable than all the liens he had collected over the years. This treasure was...priceless. 

"We happy?" Sun asked. Neptune didn't respond, too lost in thought as he stared at Roman's treasure.

"Neptune," Sun said louder, this time catching Neptune's attention, "We happy?"

"Yeah, we happy," Neptune said with a smile. He closed the briefcase then took a few steps closer to the living room. It was time to get the job done. 

"Look," Cardin said, trying to talk his way out of this situation, "I'm sorry, I didn't get your name. I got yours...uh..Neptune, right? But I never got yours-"

"-my name's Pitt...and your ass ain't talking your way out of this shit."

"I know, I know." Cardin tried to stand up but Sun quickly gestured for him to sit down, which he complied with. 

"I just want you to know how sorry we are, that things got so fucked up between us and Mr. Torchwick. When we entered into this thing, we only had the best intentions, I never-"

**BANG!**

Cardin and Fox jumped when Sun, from out of nowhere, pulled out his pistol and shot Sky Lark dead. Cardin began panicking as Neptune chuckled to himself.

"Oh, I'm sorry, did I break your concentration?" Sun said with a smirk, "I didn't mean to do that...please...continue! You were saying something about, best intentions?"

No response. Cardin started to panic, he was unable to even speak at this point. 

"Oh what's the matter? Oh...oh you were finished! Well, allow me to retort!" Leaning in to Cardin's personal space, Sun, with a harsh tone, asked, "What does Roman Torchwick look like?"

"...what-"

**CRASH**

Cardin nearly jumped when Sun flipped over the table that was in front of him, sending the rest of his breakfast crashing to the ground.

"What country you from!?" Sun shouted.

"What, what?" Cardin replied back, confused as hell.

"'What' ain't no country I've ever heard of...they speak English in what?!"

"What-"

"ENGLISH, MOTHERFUCKER, DO YOU SPEAK IT?!"

"Yes!"

"Then you know what I'm saying!?"

"Yes!"

"DESCRIBE WHAT ROMAN TORCHWICK...LOOKS LIKE!"

"...what I?"

At that, Sun raised his pistol and aimed it right between Cardin's eyes. Cardin closed his eyes, hoping that the gun would just go away if he believed it hard enough.

"SAY 'WHAT' AGAIN! SAY 'WHAT' AGAIN! I DARE YOU, I DOUBLE DARE YOU, YOU MOTHERFUCKER, SAY 'WHAT' ONE MORE OUM DAMN TIME!"

"Uh...uh...he has red hair!"

"GO ON!"

"He wears a hat!"

"Does he look like a bitch?"

"What?!"

**BANG!**

_Wrong answer._ Cardin screamed as Sun shot him in his shoulder out of sheer frustration. 

Sun then shouted, "DOES HE LOOK...LIKE...A BITCH!"

"NO!" Cardin screamed back, clutching his shoulder as he started to bleed out.

"Well then, why'd you try to fuck him like a bitch, Cardin?"

"I didn't-"

"YES YOU DID. YES YOU DID, CARDIN! YOU TRIED TO FUCK HIM. Now Roman Torchwick don't like to be fucked by anybody...except Mrs. Torchwick. You read the Book of the Two Brothers, Cardin?"

Cardin, growing weak from loss of blood, managed to mutter out, "Yes."

"Well, there's this passage that I got memorized that seems to fit this situation. Ozma 25:17. 'The path of the righteous man is beset on all sides, by the inequities of the selfish and the tyranny of evil men'." 

As he got to this line, Neptune quickly pulled out his pistol and turned the safety off. 

"'Blessed is he who, in the name of charity and good will, shepherds the weak through the valley of darkness, for he is truly his brother's keeper and the finder of lost children. And I will strike down upon thee with great vengeance and furious anger those who attempt to poison and destroy my brothers! And you will know my name is the Lord when I lay my vengeance upon thee!"

"NOOOO-"

Cardin was cut off as Sun and Neptune unloaded onto Cardin. They fired off several shots, more than enough to kill Cardin. As the dust cleared, the two men relaxed. Another job done. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Based on: Pulp Fiction
> 
> Woo! This was a fun one to write. Pulp Fiction is one of my favorite movies, so it was a bit of a treat to write the movie in the RWBYverse.
> 
> I'm not sure if I'll do the rest of the movie since there's a whole bunch of other movies I want to tackle. Let me know in the comments if you want the rest of the movie.


	8. Adam Unchained

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Set before the Faunus Rights Revolution, Adam Taurus and Qrow Branwen attempt to save Blake Belladonna from the cruel Schnee plantation known as "Schneeland"...

_Before the Faunus Rights Revolution, it was legal to own faunus as slaves. One of the biggest slave-owning families is the Schnee Family, one of Atlas' most powerful clans and an enemy to all faunus alike.  
_

_One of those slaves is Blake Belladonna, a cat faunus who had been separated from her boyfriend, the faunus slave-turned-freedman bounty hunter known as Adam Taurus. With the help of human ally Qrow Branwen, the two men go deep into Schneeland, hoping to rescue Blake..._

* * *

_ CAST _

_1) Adam Taurus as Django Freeman_

_2) Qrow Branwen as Dr. King Schultz_

_3) Blake Belladonna as Broomhilda von Shaft_

_4) Whitley Schnee as Calvin Candie_

_5) Weiss Schnee as Lara Lee Candie-Fitzwilly_

_6) Leonardo Lionheart as Stephen_

_7) Junior Xiong as Billy Crash_

_8) Klein Sieben as Leo Moguy_

_9) Clover Ebi as Butch Pooch_

* * *

Setting: Dining room, Schneeland Manor

Time: Night

"Oh there you are! I was beginning to think that you and that old lion had ran off together!"

Weiss giggled as Whitley Schnee re-entered the room, having excused himself earlier for unknown reasons. Adam and Qrow exchanged glances, both men nervous as to what Whitley was doing during his time gone. The deal was going fine; negotiate a sale for one of the Schnee's famed fighting faunus slaves, while also working in a second deal for Blake. The plan was supposedly foolproof, according to Qrow, but Adam was starting to have second thoughts. 

His fingers instinctively reached for his revolver but he backed off at the last second. _Calm yourself, Taurus...just keep it friendly for now._

Whitley let out a chuckle at Weiss' words. "That'd be a hell of a note, wouldn't it," he said. Adam noticed that Whitley was trying to not look disgusted, presumably at the idea of him running off with a faunus.

"Weiss," Whitley continued, "I was just looking out the big window. Junior Xiong is out there dealing with some shady slaver trying to sell a passel of ponies, would you be a dear and go out there, give them gals an eyeball?"

Weiss nodded and stood up, already on her way to the stables. "Of course, brother."

"Thank you, darling." 

Weiss then exited the room. As she did, Whitley took a seat while Qrow started to relax. Adam, however, remained cautious. 

"Okay," Qrow said, trying to lighten the mood, "Business never sleeps."

"You can say that again," Whitley replied back.

"Alright...so, a propos...before your exit, we were discussing the possibility of my purchasing Blake-"

"-ah yes! Yes we were, huntsman. And we will again... _in a moment._ "

The way that Whitley said those words made Adam's skin crawl. Once again, the urge to reach for his gun came back. Even Qrow was starting to feel nervous. 

As Qrow and Adam waited in silence for what Whitley was going to do next, Qrow took a sip of whiskey while Adam kept his eyes on the bag that Whitley had brought into the room. Adam's eyes widened when Whitley reached into the bag...and pulled out a faunus skull. He could tell it was a faunus since there were grooves that didn't belong in a human's skull. Based on where they were, Adam assumed that this skull belonged to a fox-based faunus. 

"Who's your little friend?" Qrow said with a smirk. Adam resisted the urge to smack Qrow right there, though truthfully, even he wanted to know what Whitley was planning.

Whitley smiled at that and cleared his throat, readying himself for a speech. "This is Fennec Albain," he said, "He's an old joe that lived around here for a long time...and I do mean a long, damn time. Old Fennec here took care of my daddy...and my daddy's daddy. Till he upped and died one day, he also took care of me."

Whitley lit a cigarette, as if to exaggerate that point. Adam, meanwhile, stared at him, deeply resisting the urge to just shoot him.

"Growing up the son of a huge plantation owner in Atlas," Whitley continued, "Puts a human man in contact with a whole lot of... _faunus faces._ I spent my whole life here...right here...in Schneeland. Surrounded... _by faunus faces._ And seeing them every day, day in and day out, I only had one question. Why don't they kill us?" 

Adam turned away as Whitley's glare started to cut into his soul. He could've sworn that Whitley was talking about him. _No...he can't be onto us. We were careful._

Klein Sieben, who had been sitting across Adam and Qrow, started laughing at Whitley's words. But much to the man's surprise, Whitley glared at him back, silencing the butler. Qrow picked up on this and, right then and there, knew something was going wrong. 

"Now right out there on that porch," Whitley continued, "Three times a week for fifty years, old Fennec here would shave my daddy with a straight razor. Now, if I was old Fennec, I would have cut my daddy's oumdamn throat, and it wouldn't have taken me no fifty years to do it neither. But he never did. Why not?" 

Whitley smirked while Adam scowled at the man. _He didn't kill Jacques Schnee because he knew what would happen to him if he did. It's self-preservation, you bastard._

As Qrow and Klein watched Whitley with morbid curiosity, Whitley stood up and pulled out a mini-saw from his bag. He then turned to his guests and said, "You see...the science of phrenology...is crucial to understanding the separation of two species. In the skull of the faunus here, the area associated with submissiveness is larger than any human on Remnant!"

As he spoke, he began to saw into Fennec's skull, further enraging Adam at the lack of respect being given to his fellow faunus. Qrow, meanwhile, winced at the pseudoscience being tossed around the room. He was no scientist but even he knew that Whitley was saying nothing but garbage. 

Once Whitley finished cutting into the skull, he pulled out a pair of pliers and pulled out the piece of skull that he had been cutting into.

"If you examine, this piece of skull here," he said, "You'll notice three distinct dimples...here...here...and here. Now, if I was holding a skull of a...of an...let's say, Ozma or...the Great King of Vale...these three dimples would be found in the area of the skull most associated with creativity! But...this is the skull of old Fennec. And in the skull of old Fennec, unburdened by genes, these three dimples exist in the area of the skull most associated with _...servility."_

Adam frowned. Whitley had said those last words with emphasis...right to his face. 

"Now bull boy," Whitley said with a bit more hostility in his tone, "I will admit you are pretty clever. But...if I took this hammer here and I bashed it in your skull...you would have the same three dimples...in the same place...as old Fennec."

**BOOM!**

Qrow and Adam jumped up in their seats as one of the Schnee's gunmen, Clover Ebi, burst into the room. Before either men could pull out their guns, Whitley slammed his fist down on the table, breaking one of the plates, and shouted at both of them to stop moving.

"Now lay your palms flat on the table top!" Whitley screamed, "If you lift those palms off that turtle shell table top, Mr. Ebi is gonna let loose with both barrels of that sawed off!" 

With no way out, both Qrow and Adam reluctantly sat back down and did as they were instructed.

"There have been a LOT OF LIES, said around this dinner table here tonight, but THAT you can believe!" Turning to Klein, Whitley then said, "Mr. Sieben...would you be so kind as to collect the pistols hanging off of those boys' hips here?" 

Klein nodded, then moved up to quickly disarm both men. As he made his moves, he whispered, "Huntsman" to Qrow as he took his guns away. For Adam, he whispered "Jackass". With both men disarmed, Whitley lit another cigarette and prepared for his next move. No need to play it nice anymore.

"Now...where were we? Oh yes, I do believe you were just getting ready to make me a proposition to buy Blake. Am I right?"

Qrow weakly nodded for yes.

"All right then," Whitley said as he pulled out a chair for Blake, "Bring out Blakey!"

The doors to the kitchen opened and the head of the house slaves, Leonardo Lionheart, pushed a terrified Blake Belladonna inside the room. Her eyes met Adam and at that moment, Adam felt truly powerless. No weapon, no way out...and now Blake was in the crosshairs of a madman. 

Whitley moved over to Blake and grabbed her by the back of her neck. Qrow and Adam flinched in anger as Whitley basically forced Blake into the seat.

"Sit your ass in that oumdamn chair," he shouted,

"Lay your hands flat on that table," Lionheart said, backing up his "master".

"And shut your mouth!" 

Blake complied, not knowing any other way out of this mess. Adam was now clenching his fists in rage but he had no idea how to turn this situation around. 

"Mr. Branwen," Whitley continued, "In Mantle, you yourself said that for the 'right beast', you'd be willing to pay what some may consider is a ridiculous amount. To which, me myself, said, 'what is your definition of ridiculous?', to which you said, 'twelve thousand liens'. Now considering you all have ridden a whole lotta miles, went to a whole lotta trouble, and done spread a whole lotta bull, to purchase this lovely lady right here, it would appear the Blake is in fact the 'right animal'! And if y'all wanna leave Schneeland with Blake...the price is twelve thousand liens." 

"And I take it that you prefer the take-it-or-leave-it style of negotiation?" Qrow retorted, unhappy at all the abuse that was going towards Blake.

"Yes I do, huntsman," Whitley answered back, "You see, under the laws of the Kingdom of Atlas...Blake here is my property. And I can choose to do with my property, whatever I so desire! And if you all think my price for this _housecat_ here is too steep...what I'm gonna desire to do is..." 

Suddenly, Whitley shoved all the plates on the table aside and slammed Blake's head down onto the table. Whitley grabbed a hammer from his bag and aimed it right for Blake's head. Qrow gasped in shock while Adam, having had enough, stood up from his seat, ready to beat this man dead. However, he was stopped by Clover Ebi, who had his sawed-off shotgun aimed right for his back.

"I'm gonna take this fucking hammer here, and beat her ass to death with it!" Whitley shouted, his eyes full of blood-lust. Adam gritted his teeth, feeling even more powerless than before. "I'll do it right in front of both y'all! Then we can examine the three dimples inside Blake's skull!"

Adam didn't even bother hiding his anger at this point. He didn't have to say anything, his face said it all. _I am going to kill this man! I am going to kill EVERYONE in this fucking mansion._

"Now," Whitley shouted directly at Qrow, "What's it gonna be, huntsman!? Huh?! WHAT'S IT GONNA BE!?"

"MAY I LIFT MY HANDS OFF THE TABLE TOP IN ORDER TO REMOVE MY BILLFOLD?!" Qrow stammered out, not wanting to see either Adam or Blake killed. 

With the admission of his defeat, Whitley smirked at Qrow and said, "Yes, you may." Instantly, Qrow moved to grab his wallet which contained all the bills he had on his person and threw it on the table for Leonardo and Whitley to examine. 

Lionheart grabbed the wallet and counted through the money. After announcing that there was at least $12,000 in the wallet, Whitley, with a sadistic smile on his face, slammed the hammer down...on a plate right by Blake's head. Blake screamed in terror as the hammer almost made contact with her.

"SOLD," Whitley shouted, "To the man with the exceptional tolerance for alcohol...and his unexceptional _pet bull_!" He then casually threw the hammer onto the table, satisfied with his victory.

Qrow and Adam couldn't believe what had just happened. From the plan going so smoothly...to it crashing down like this at the last second. Adam couldn't help but wonder if luck just wasn't on their side. Qrow, on the other hand, knew exactly how poor his relationship with luck was. Blake, meanwhile, was just happy to be alive. Traumatized...but alive. 

"Mr. Sieben," Whitley said, "Will you make these gentlemen a receipt for $12,000, please?"

"Twelve thousand liens...yes sir."

"It was a pleasure doing business with y'all. Now gentlemen...if you care to join me in the parlor...we will be serving cake. Bet you've never had cake before, bull boy. After all...cake is a _human_ delicacy." 

* * *

Setting: Parlor room of the Schnee Manor

Time: One hour later...

The faunus house slaves began serving cake to all the residents still inside the building. As they did, Qrow and Whitley finished up with the final negotiations surrounding the contracts for Blake's release. The exchange was legal for the most part; Qrow's $12,000 for Blake. The papers were legally binding and even Whitley, despite everything he did in the dining room, kept to his word and signed the contract.

Still, Qrow couldn't shake the bad vibes he was getting from signing the receipt. It felt like he signed a deal with the devil. He knew Whitley was a horrible human being...but seeing his madness in full display shook him to his core. 

Aside from dinner, Qrow was just bothered by how the Schnees lived in general. His mind kept flashing back to hours earlier, when he and Adam witnessed the Schnees literally let a faunus slave get eaten by a pack of wild dogs. Qrow couldn't even hide how disgusted he was as he recalled all the gruesome details from that incident.

_Monsters...these people are monsters._

The more frustrated he got, the more everything in the room started to annoy him. His attention turned towards the harpist in the room, who had been brought in by Whitley to "lighten the mood". However, instead of making him feel better about this whole situation, Qrow just kept getting more and more agitated. Unable to take it any longer, Qrow stood up and walked over to the harpist.

"Excuse me," Qrow said, trying to rein in his anger, "Excuse me madam?"

The harpist didn't respond.

"Could you please stop playing Veethoben?" 

Still no response. Finally, Qrow snapped.

"Take your hands off that harp!" he shouted as he swiped the woman's hands off the strings. The harpist looked at him, shocked, while everyone else in the room looked at him as if he were crazy. Feeling everyone's eyes on him, Qrow stormed out and moved into the library.

"Huntsman!" Leonardo Lionheart shouted out, "Huntsman, you can't go in there-"

"-Lionheart," Whitley interrupted, "Please stop."

"He's got no business going in there-"

"-let it be. He's a little upset, that's all. I'll handle this." 

Lionheart nodded and backed away. As he did, Whitley walked over to a nearby table and grabbed two slices of cake, one for him and the other for Qrow. He then joined Qrow in the library, completely oblivious as to how angry Qrow was at the moment.

Adam kept his eyes on both men. He had a bad feeling about this.

So did Clover, his shotgun still at hand. 

"Cake?" Whitley asked, almost a little too innocently.

Qrow scoffed. "I don't go in for sweets, thank you."

Whitley shrugged it off and sat down, enjoying his slice of cake. "You brooding about me getting the best of you?"

"Actually...I was thinking of that poor fellow you fed to the dogs today. _Tukson_. And I was wondering what Kali would think of all this."

Whitley eyed him, not sure what he meant by that. "Come again?"

Qrow turned around to face Whitley. "Kali Platt, she wrote the _Three Silver-Eyed Warriors._ "

"Yes, of course huntsman-"

"-I figured you must be an admirer, you named your slave after her novel's lead character. Now...if Kali Platt had been there today, I wonder what she would have made of it?"

"You doubt she'd approve?"

"Yes...her approval would be a dubious proposition at best."

Whitley scoffed at that. "Soft-hearted Valeans, am I right?"

Whitley looked at Qrow, hoping he would be laughing at his joke, but was surprised to see Qrow looking so serious. Then, in the harshest tone he could produce at the moment, Qrow said, "Kali Platt is _a faunus_."

Adam and Blake couldn't help but smirk at that. Meanwhile, Whitley, Clover, Leonardo, and Klein all frowned. They felt like they were being slighted. 

Tired of being in this room, Qrow pointed over to a stack of documents and said, "Are these Blake's papers?"

Whitley, still frowning at the fact that one of his favorite authors turned out to be a faunus, muttered, "Yes, they are." 

"May I?"

"Of course. It's all there...her bill of sale, ownership history, freedom papers-"

"-would you have ink and pen for me?"

"Right over there, on that little table."

"Thank you."

Even though the conversation was mostly innocuous, Adam and Blake couldn't help but feel the tension rising in the room. Whitley was still clearly upset while Qrow was doing his best to come off as passive-aggressive as possible. This wasn't lost on Clover either as he kept looking to the faunus in the room. All it would take was one wrong move and this whole room would turn into chaos. 

After a few more tense seconds, Qrow finished signing the contracts. With a smile, he turned to Blake and said, "Blake Belladonna...consider yourself a free woman." 

Blake couldn't help but smile at that. Even Adam, who rarely smiled, did so as well. Regardless of what happened earlier, both men still accomplished what they set out to do. They got Blake's freedom.

But then, that's when the bad vibes came back to Adam. _Okay...how does this go south?_

"Mr. Schnee," Qrow said to Whitley, his tone still passive-aggressive, "Normally I would say, 'auf wiedersehen', but since what 'auf wiedersehen' actually means is 'till I see you again', and since I never wish to see you again, to you sir, I simply say...good bye." 

At that, Qrow turned to leave. Adam nodded at him and he called for Blake to follow. Whitley, on the other hand, couldn't help but feel insulted. He won but he still felt like he lost. _These people should be groveling before me! And here they are...insulting me!_

As the three were about to leave the Schnee manor for good, Whitley shouted out, "One more moment, huntsman!" 

Qrow, Adam, and Blake stopped, anxious as to what Whitley has planned now. 

"What," Qrow growled. Whitley stood up from his chair to face him. 

"It's a custom here in Atlas, that once a business deal is concluded...that the two parties...shake hands. It implies good faith.

"I'm not from Atlas-"

"-but you are...in my house, huntsman. So I'm afraid I must insist."

Now Qrow started to feel agitated. This was just petty bullshit at this point. "Insist? On what? That I shake your hand? Oh, then I'm afraid I must insist in the opposite direction."

Whitley started to frown, clearly unhappy at the level of defiance being thrown his way. "You know what I think you are?"

"What you think I am? No, I don't." 

"I think you are a bad loser."

"And I think you're an abysmal winner."

"Nevertheless...here, in Atlas, a deal ain't done until the two parties have shook hands. Even after all that paper signing, don't mean shit...if you don't shake my hand."

Qrow resisted the urge to facepalm and began to really wonder if Atlas was the most lacking in logic of the four kingdoms. "If I don't shake your hand...you're gonna throw away twelve thousand liens? I don't think so." 

That did it. The blood-lust came back to Whitley. Qrow saw it, Adam saw it, Blake saw it. For Qrow, he was wondering if this brat was willing to take it this far.

"Mr. Ebi," Whitley said, "If Blake tries to leave here before this animal-loving Mistralian shakes my hand, you cut her ass down."

Those orders sent shivers down Qrow's spine. And just like that, the people in the room started to move around, like chess pieces trying to outmaneuver each other.

Clover Ebi aimed his shotgun right at Blake.

Adam stepped in front of Blake to take the brunt of Clover's shotgun. 

Lionheart...stepped backwards to avoid getting hit.

 _I guess there's no other way out of this. Maybe this is just my bad luck coming back to haunt me again?_ Qrow turned to Adam, knowing what he had to do. Adam, however, stared back at him, not sure as to what the alcoholic had in mind. 

"You really want me to shake your hand?" Qrow asked, turning back to Whitley.

Whitley grinned and extended his hand out. "I insist." 

"If you insist." Qrow put on the best fake smile he could. He walked forward as Whitley kept his eyes to Qrow's hand. Qrow stretched out his right arm as if he were going to shake Whitley's hand. Whitley grinned as Qrow got closer, already feeling that he won a second time. Then-

**BANG!**

In one fluid motion, a tiny pistol extended from Qrow's sleeve and he fired, hitting Whitley in the heart. At first, Whitley didn't even know what just happened. He looked up at Qrow, then grabbed his heart, trying in vain to stop the bleeding. He didn't make it too far. After taking a few steps away from Qrow, Whitley tried to grab the wall for support. Instead, he tripped on the globe that was in the library, causing him to lose balance. He was dead by the time he hit the floor.

"NOOOOOOOOOO," Lionheart screamed as he pushed Qrow out of the way, "WHITLEY! WHITLEY!" He cried as he cradled Whitley's corpse in his arms. 

Time seemed to slow down as the rest of the people in the room tried to comprehend what just happened. Adam's eyes widened as Clover Ebi turned around to aim his shotgun at Qrow. Adam turned to Qrow, hoping to the Brothers that Qrow had something else planned out.

"I'm sorry," Qrow solemnly said, "I couldn't resist."

 _Damn it Qrow. You just had to kill him, didn't you?_ Adam didn't blame the guy though; he had been wanting to kill Whitley Schnee since the moment he arrived.

**BOOM!**

Clover Ebi fired, hitting Qrow square in the chest. Qrow flew back, collapsing by the bookshelves. 

_Gloves are off...time to go to work._

With Clover Ebi's attention being towards Qrow's corpse, Adam moved in and quickly swiped the revolver from Clover's belt. He fired a shot right into Clover's chest, killing him instantly.

"This animal's going crazy, the hell!" Klein Sieben shouted out as he tried to flee the room. Adam fired at the man but missed, hitting the humans' precious cake. The cake exploded on impact, the pieces showering the room. Blake started screaming, the violence being too much for her at the moment. 

"Help!" Klein shouted, "He's blowing everybody away-"

**BOOM!**

Klein's chest exploded as Adam fired again, this time hitting the man. As Klein stumbled out of the doorway, Adam jumped through, knocking Klein flat on his stomach. Adam then fired two shots at the Schnee henchman who was standing by the door, killing him with the second shot. 

Another Schnee henchman appeared at the top of the stairs. He fired down at Adam...but accidentally hit Klein on his back. Adam, glad that the henchman had poor aim, turned and fired at the man. The henchman was killed instantly and his corpse fell, tumbling down the stairs. 

As soon as that guy died, another Schnee henchman appeared at the top of the stairs. Taking careful aim with his rifle, he aimed right for Adam's head. Adam tried firing at this henchman but quickly realized he was out of ammo.

_Gotta move quick!_

Adam rolled out of the way and picked up a revolver dropped from one of the fallen Schnee henchmen. The Schnee henchman with the rifle fired...and hit Klein on the back, finally killing him. As the Schnee henchman turned his aim to Adam, Adam managed to fire first. The Schnee henchman yelped in surprise before falling backwards and out through a set of glass windows.

"Holy!"

The front doors swung open and four Schnee henchmen barged their way in. None of them knew what was happening, all they heard was gunshots coming from inside.

Adam wasted no time wasting the fools. He fired off every round in the revolver, killing two instantly and wounding a third in the leg. The fourth henchman managed to hide in time. Adam then hid in a hallway to catch his breath. 

The surviving Schnee henchman began firing at Adam, cursing and screaming as he did. The Schnee henchman who had only gotten injured was screaming in pain as he held his chest where he had gotten shot. As the shots kept missing, Adam quickly checked his revolver.

 _Shit, out of ammo._ _What now?_ Adam quickly glanced around the room...and saw an unused revolver in the belt of one of the henchman he had just killed. Now...he just needed to wait until an opportunity for him to swipe it. 

Amusingly enough for Adam, the opportunity came when the Schnee henchman who was firing at him accidentally hit the injured henchman on the leg. "YOU SHOT ME, YOU STUPID SON OF A BITCH!" With the henchman distracted, Adam lunged forward and grabbed the revolver. He managed to back out just in time as gunshots narrowly missed his head.

"WHO THE FUCK...GAVE AN ANIMAL...AN OUMDAMNED GUN?!?!"

Two more Schnee henchman joined the fight. Adam was forced to hang back as the three gunmen wildly opened fire at him. Pieces of wood and splashes of blood (the gunmen were also hitting the corpses in the room) flew all around him as Adam tried his best to stay out of the line of fire. 

_Okay...time to push back._

Taking a risk, Adam lunged forward again. He took cover behind one of the corpses in the room and fired a shot. The shot ended up hitting the already-injured Schnee henchman, once again in the leg. _How is that man not dead yet?_

The gunfight soon turned into a back-and-forth affair. The Schnee henchmen kept missing their shots while Adam missed his second shot completely. _Steady Adam...you're better than them. Look them right in the eyes...and fire._

The third shot didn't miss; he hit one of the henchmen square in the face, the pink mist of blood showering the front porch. 

"AIN'T NO...ANIMAL...GONNA KILL ME-"

 _Shut the fuck up._ Adam fired again, hitting the doorway. The woodchips that exploded as a result of that shot landed in the henchman's eyes, forcing him to scream in pain and back away. 

As the henchmen started to back away, Adam noticed a second revolver on the corpse's belt. He grabbed the gun, then made his way back to cover, narrowly missing another shot. 

Before he could take a breath, another set of doors burst open and a whole squad of Schnee henchmen stormed in. They opened fire prematurely, killing two faunus servants who were just trying to flee the scene. 

Now...Adam was _pissed_. As the henchmen stormed the room, he stood up and aimed right down the center of the group. The first shot hit the leader, killing him instantly. 

The second shot did even more damage. It killed the guy that Adam was aiming for...then killed the guy behind him as the bullet traveled through the first guy's chest. 

The third shot hit another guy. Surprised at getting hit, the Schnee henchman spun around and fired a shot without thinking about it. Unfortunately for him, the shot hit another henchman, killing him instantly.

Adam tried firing again- _CLICK!_ _Shit, empty!_ He quickly recovered by tossing the revolver, then firing another shot from the other revolver he had. The shot went through the man, and went on to travel into the parlor room. 

Suddenly, three other henchman arrived at the front door, one of them being Hei Xiong aka Junior. The henchman who Adam had shot at was somehow still standing, forcing him to fire another shot at the man's elbow. Blood poured in the air as the man raised his revolver up in pain. Taking advantage of this, Adam grabbed the man's revolver, then held him in place as a human body shield.

Junior fired at Adam, hitting his shield. Adam fired back, missing Junior but killing another henchman instantly. However, when he started firing at Junior, he started missing as Junior maneuvered his way to the parlor room. Now, back in the hallway where he was taking cover, Adam abandoned his human body shield and walked to the end of the hallway. Realizing that he was going to be overwhelmed soon by the second wave, he toppled over a nearby cabinet and hid underneath it. 

But that's when he realized...he was out of ammo.

"Shit..."

The Schnee reinforcements soon arrived in full force. As Adam tried looking around for them from where he was hiding, he was suddenly covered in gunfire. Luckily for him, the cabinet was doing its job by keeping him safe but he could only wonder how long it would last. 

"HOLD YOUR FIRE!" Lionheart shouted.

The Schnee henchmen kept on firing.

"I SAID, 'HOLD YOUR FIRE'!"

The Schnee henchmen kept-

"STOP SHOOTING, OUMDAMN IT!" 

At that, the henchmen stopped firing, awaiting further instructions. To Adam, it amazed him that the Schnee were taking orders from a faunus. True, a faunus who had completely accepted his enslaved status, but a faunus nonetheless. 

Lionheart emerged from the library. Facing to where Adam was hiding, he shouted out, "Adam!"

"What?!"

"We got your woman! Junior Xiong here has got his pistol upside her head!" 

Adam gritted his teeth as Junior reemerged from the parlor room. He had his revolver aimed right at Blake's head. Blake was shivering from fear as she kept her eyes on Adam. 

"You don't stop all that shooting...he's gonna blow her oumdamn brains out! And that ain't no threat, horse boy! That there is a promise! Or...you can give up! Throw your gun out! And we won't kill you!" 

"Horseshit!"

"Man, I'm injured, okay. I swear, on the Brothers...if you give up...ain't no harm gonna come to you."

Adam shook his head. _This fool lying out his ass._ "And I'm supposed to believe your lion ass?" 

Lionheart, offended at Adam's words, suddenly changed his tone. Going from negotiating to threatening, Lionheart shouted, "Personally, I don't give a good oumdamn what you believe or don't believe! I BELIEVE, if you don't give up in the next ten seconds, we GONNA BLOW THIS BITCH'S BRAINS OUT! BELIEVE THAT!" 

Adam lowered his head. There was no way out of this, no scenario where he gets to walk away scot free. No ammo, surrounded on all fronts, and with Blake's life in danger...he had to give up.

Turning to Blake, he could see that she was whispering to him to not give up. But he couldn't do it. Not with this much at stake.

"Don't do it," Blake said, tears starting to flow as she did, "Just give me up, Adam."

"SIX!" Lionheart shouted.

"Just let me go, please."

"SEVEN!"

Adam sighed. "I care too much," Adam whispered. As soon as he said that, Blake started shaking her head, knowing what he was about to do. 

"Adam, no-," Blake whimpered. 

"EIGHT!"

"I love you-"

"NINE-"

"-HOLD IT!" Adam shouted, stopping Lionheart's countdown. Blake closed her eyes, not wanting to see what would happen to him. 

"I give up," Adam said, resigned to his fate.

Lionheart grinned. "I can't hear you, bull boy!"

"I SAID...'I GIVE UP'!" 

Adam tossed his gun to show he meant it.

 _Well...at least Whitley Schnee is gone. Hold on Qrow...I'll be seeing you soon._ As Adam emerged from his hiding spot, the Schnee henchmen made their way into the room to take him into custody. Blake started bawling, knowing that there was no way he was going to be allowed to live now. 

Adam removed his jacket and raised his hands to surrender. As he stepped out into the bloody lobby room, the only thing he could think of was just how close he was to finally beating the Schnees and freeing Blake. So close...and still, so far. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Based on: Django Unchained
> 
> So that was two Quentin Tarantino movies back-to-back. Don't worry, this won't become an exclusively QT fanfic. I just really wanted to do this one since I thought it'd be fun to write Adam in a heroic role for once.
> 
> I mean...think about it. He's the villain 90% of the time. With Django, this is the one role where I believe that among the RWBY cast, he's the best suited for the lead part. I mean, in the trailers, Django literally says that he loves being a bounty hunter since he gets paid to kill white people. Just switch "white" with "human", and you get Adam Taurus. 
> 
> On a minor note, why Qrow as Schultz? Honestly...it's purely because of that scene where Schultz pours two beers for him and Django. The man gaining Django's trust through alcohol is such a Qrow move that the casting felt right.
> 
> On another minor note, I had to change Kali's name since it would ruin the whole "Alexander Dumas is black" mic drop moment. It's still Kali Belladonna, she's just not Blake's mom in this universe. Also, Platt is a reference to Tara Platt, Kali's voice actor.
> 
> (Okay...come on, that lion/lying ass line, you gotta admit that was pretty good. And I swear, I didn't plan that one)


	9. Ar-Long Xiao-zenegger

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A series of snippets from universes in which Yang and Taiyang's puns and one-liners take center stage...

Universe 1987

The huntsmen and huntresses charged the White Fang unit stationed in Menagerie. Among the soldiers was Taiyang Xiao Long, who had just rejoined the military when he heard about an increase in Grimm attacks and the need for more troops.

The battle wasn't too difficult for the huntsmen and huntresses; most of the White Fang unit had either been killed or scattered to the wind. However, Taiyang wasn't taking any chances. No way was he dying in Menagerie, especially in some mission that was supposed to be easy. 

As he fought off some White Fang rebels, he sensed another sneaking up behind him. _This guy must think he's a genius. Too bad he's got metal for feet._

**SCHWOOP!**

Taiyang reacted quickly by grabbing his Bowie knife and tossing it right at the White Fang soldier. The blade was so large that not only did it cut right through the soldier...it went through his back and into the wooden pole behind him.

"Stick around," Taiyang said with a smirk. _Damn, wish someone had heard that one._

* * *

Universe 1985

_Kidnap Ruby, Blake, and Weiss...not under my watch!_

Yang Xiao Long grumbled as she entered the bullhead with Ilia Amitola. The mission was simple; the plane was on its way to Kuo Kuana, where Yang was supposed to help White Fang leader Sienna Khan in her mission to remove Ghira Belladonna from power. If she refused to help...then the White Fang were going to murder Ruby, Blake, and Weiss. Ilia was with her to make sure she didn't run off or anything.

As Yang scanned the room for a way out, she turned to one of the flight attendants and asked, "Could I have a blanket and a pillow, please?" She didn't actually need them, she just needed to throw Ilia off.

The flight attendant nodded and grabbed those items for Yang from a nearby closet. As she did, Yang noticed that the doors to the bullhead were closing. She was running out of time. 

For the most part, the White Fang's plan was going smoothly. Ilia was getting ready for a long flight, Corsac Albain watched as the bullhead prepared for liftoff, and the flight attendants were going through their usual safety protocols. 

That's when Yang made her move.

First, she made sure none of the flight attendants were watching her. Second, she made sure that Ilia didn't suspect her of any "funny" business. Third, Yang grabbed the blanket that the flight attendant gave her and made movements as if she were preparing to go to sleep. Just as Ilia was about to relax in her seat-

**THWOMP!**

As Yang pulled the blanket up to her head, at the same time, she rammed her elbow right into Ilia Amitola's face. The force of the impact was so strong that Ilia was knocked out instantly.

To finish the job, Yang casually pulled Ilia in close to her and, with one twist, snapped Ilia's neck. 

_Huh? No one heard that? I guess lady luck's on my side._

Yang then took her pillow and placed it behind Ilia's head. She then placed her blanket on Ilia's corpse to make it look like she was sleeping. Just to make sure no one would think twice about how Ilia looked, Yang grabbed Ilia's hat and placed it over her face. That way, no one would notice any changes once rigor mortis set in and her face started changing color.

A flight attendant walked by Yang. Just to cover all her bases, Yang waved to the attendant, who then walked up to her.

"Excuse me, how long is the flight?" Yang asked, trying to sound as innocent as possible.

"We land in Kuo Kuana in exactly 11 hours," the flight attendant said.

"Thank you. Oh, and do me a favor. Don't disturb my friend... _she's dead tired."_

* * *

Universe 1990

Raven Branwen and Summer Rose were locked in a vicious, back-and-forth battle. Summer Rose had just arrived to save Taiyang Xiao Long from mercenaries sent by Arthur Watts. Chief among those mercenaries was Raven. 

There was a lot to take in for this fight; Raven, turns out was secretly working for the Inner Circle and that her marriage to Taiyang was all a cover just so she could monitor his actions. Taiyang apparently had a whole second life that he couldn't recall; something about how he was actually someone named "Jaune Arc" and that he had wiped his memory to protect himself. And then there was Summer...a woman who Taiyang had only seen in his dreams.

But at the moment, none of that mattered to Raven and Summer. To Raven, her sole focus was in stopping Summer and for Summer, her sole focus was to save Taiyang from being captured by Watts. 

"Fuck you!" Raven shouted as she kicked Summer in the chest. Summer groaned as she collapsed to the ground in pain. Raven, trying to finish the fight off, grabbed a knife she had hidden in her boot.

 _Not so fast, Rae!_ Taiyang, still surprised by everything that was happening around him, grabbed a nearby rifle and aimed it right at Raven. Right as Raven was going to stab Summer, Tai fired off a shot, knocking the knife out of Raven's hand. Raven, surprised, turned to Taiyang, who had the rifle aimed straight at her forehead. 

"Tai," Raven said, trying to sound as innocent as possible. Tai didn't buy it. 

"Honey," Raven cooed as she put on her best (albeit fake) smile, "You wouldn't hurt me...would you, sweetheart?" Tai still didn't buy it. This was Raven after all, pet names weren't exactly her thing. And he was right; as she was speaking, she also began reaching for the pistol she had stashed behind her back.

"Sweetheart, be reasonable," Raven continued, "After all...we're married!" Suddenly, Raven dropped her fake smile and pulled the gun out. As she was about to fire-

**BOOM!**

Tai was quicker on the draw. Raven was hit in the forehead and she was dead before she collapsed to the ground. 

Tai smirked. " _Consider that a divorce._ "

Summer Rose, although thankful she was alive, frowned at both the pun and what Taiyang just admitted.

"THAT WAS YOUR WIFE?" she shouted at him. All Taiyang could do was nod, somewhat embarrassed.

"Well...what a bitch," Summer continued as she casually pushed Raven's corpse off of her. 

* * *

Return to Universe 1985

A few hours after killing Ilia Amitola, Yang Xiao Long (along with a jumpy Velvet Scarlatina who had decided to tag along in Yang's mission to rescue Team RWB_), found herself in a deadly car chase with Corsac Albain, the other White Fang member who had been assigned to her by Sienna Khan. Corsac fired off several shots at Yang's car while Yang kept trying to ram him off the road.

Eventually, Yang succeeded. She managed to push Corsac's car far enough off-road so that it was thrown off-balance by a little hill. Corsac couldn't stop himself in time and suddenly, his car was flipped on its side. Meanwhile, Yang, who was still speeding down the road despite trying to slow the car down, eventually crashed into a nearby pole. By some miracle, neither Yang nor Velvet were seriously injured in the crash.

"You all right," Yang asked Velvet as she checked her for injuries.

"I think I'm dead," Velvet groaned.

"You're all right. Okay, wait here."

_Show time._

Yang got out of the car and walked over to Corsac's toppled over one. As Corsac tried to crawl out of the wreckage, Yang kneeled down and grabbed what appeared to be a motel key. _The Sunspot Motel, room 5. Guess that's where my next lead is. And now...time to take out the trash._

Yang pulled Corsac out, then slammed him against his car.

"Where's my team, Corsac?!" Yang shouted, her eyes turning red as she did.

"Kiss my ass-"

"-I can't hear you?!"

"I'll say it a little louder, then: get fucked!" 

Yang sighed. However, part of her was glad that he said that since it was going to make what she was going to do next easier. 

"Listen," Yang said as she picked Corsac up and moved over to the edge of the road. There was a cliff on the other side, one that had a steep drop that would kill anyone instantly if they had fallen into it.

"Loyalty is very touching...but it is not the MOST important thing in your life right now! But what IS important is GRAVITY! And I have to remind you, Corsac...this is my weak arm!"

Yang started dangling Corsac over the edge of the cliff. Corsac, predictably started panicking. 

"You can't kill me, Xiao Long," Corsac whimpered, "You need me to find your team!"

"Where are they?"

"I don't know, but Fennec knows! I'll take you where I'm supposed to meet my brother!"

"But you won't."

"Why not?"

Yang smirked as she held out the motel keys with her free hand. "Because I already know. Now...remember, Corsac, when I promised to kill you last?"

"T-t-t-that's right, Yang! Y-y-y-you did!"

" _...I LIED."_

Yang let Corsac go. Corsac screamed as he fell down the cliff. His screams only stopped once his body made contact with the hard ground. 

With Corsac finished, Yang walked back to Velvet, who had gotten out of the car. "So now you don't have a car," Velvet groaned, pointing out that the car they were in was completely dead. Yang just shrugged. _No, we still have a car. And it's not like the owner's gonna complain._

With all her strength, Yang flipped over Corsac's car so that it was in its correct position. Velvet couldn't help but gawk at the sheer display of strength she had just witnessed. She then hopped into the shotgun seat while Yang got into the driver's seat. 

"Hey, by the way, what did you do with Corsac?" Velvet asked.

"I let him go," Yang said with a smirk. After a few seconds, Velvet rolled her eyes, realizing what the pun was. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Based on: Arnold Schwarzenegger clips (Predator, Commando, Total Recall)
> 
> I wanted to do something fun and short after the Adam Unchained chapter. Basically, consider this chapter more of a breather after two drama-heavy ones.
> 
> P.S. Why nothing from the Terminator movies? Because that's a Penny Polendina-only role, that's why.


	10. The Walking Grimm

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> While searching for Brawnz Ni, Qrow Branwen and James Ironwood confront each other after weeks of heated rivalry...

**Background: Remnant is in ruins. An unknown virus that originated from the Grimm has now infected all of mankind and faunus alike. The consequence; once you die, you corpse is reanimated, turning you into what is known as a "zombie".**

**In Vale, a group of survivors led by Qrow and Ironwood attempt to find sanctuary...**

* * *

CASTING

1) Qrow Branwen as Rick Grimes

2) James Ironwood as Shane Walsh

3) Brawnz Ni as Randall

4) Taiyang Xiao Long as Hershel Greene

5) Flynt Coal as T-Dog 

6) Summer Rose as Lori Grimes

7) Ruby Rose as Carl Grimes 

8) Lie Ren as Glenn Rhee 

9) Cinder Fall as Daryl Dixon

10) Raven Branwen (renamed "Raven Hullum") as Carol Peletier

UNSEEN CASTING (implied by the character relationships) 

1) Yang Xiao Long as Maggie Greene

2) Arthur Watts as Merle Dixon

3) Vernal as Sophia Peletier 

4) Leonardo Lionheart as Dale Horvath 

* * *

_THEN _

_Setting: The Xiao Long family farm_

_"QROW! QROW!"_

_Qrow Branwen and the others stopped looking around the barn when they heard James Ironwood calling Qrow's name. They were all still rattled from earlier; Brawnz Ni, a man who they were holding captive because he was part of a gang of marauders that attacked Qrow, Ren, and Taiyang, had somehow escaped his chains. It puzzled all of them since they made sure that there was no way the man could've broken out._

_Ironwood, though, knew the truth. It was because he was the one who let Brawnz Ni out. Earlier, he had let the man out, making it look like he escaped. Then, after making it a mile away from the farm, Ironwood killed Brawnz. He then went on to injure himself to make it look like he had fought Brawnz._

_It was all according to plan. No matter what...he was going to regain control of the group from Qrow. Not only that...he was going to convince Summer Rose that he was better for her. By the time he was done, Summer would forgive him and fall back into his arms while Ruby Rose wouldn't think twice in calling him 'dad'._

_"What happened?!" Summer shouted back, surprised that Ironwood's nose was bleeding._

_"He's armed!" Ironwood lied, "He's got my gun! He's got Due Process!"_

_"Are you okay?!" Ruby shouted, turning green from all the blood on Ironwood's face._

_Ironwood shrugged it off. "I'm fine, little bastard just snuck up on me. Clocked me in the face!"_

_Qrow had heard enough. This was an emergency and, first things first, he had to make sure the group was safe. No way this bastard was going to get away from the area._

_"All right," Qrow said, facing the group, "Taiyang, Flynt Coal, get everybody back in the house! Ren, Cinder Fall, come with us!"_

_The group nodded along, agreeing with the plan. Cinder, still confused as to how this whole situation arose in the first place, loaded up her arrows and grabbed her bow. Meanwhile, Ren sighed, dreading the fact that he had to go back into the forest to find this marauder._

_"Flynt, I'm gonna need that gun!" Ironwood shouted. Flynt didn't argue and handed him his gun. Luckily for Ironwood, Flynt didn't catch his smirk as he holstered the pistol. Once again...all according to plan._

_Raven stepped up, unsure as to why Qrow's group was getting geared up. It seemed like an unnecessary risk, considering what the group's original plan for Brawnz Ni was. "Just let him go," Raven Hullum said, "That was the plan, wasn't it? Just to let him go?"_

_"The plan was to cut him loose far away from here," Qrow snapped, "Not on our front step with a gun!"_

_Raven nodded her head, fully understanding the gravity of the situation. Still, she didn't want to lose anymore people. Not after Vernal. Not after Lionheart._

_"Don't go out there," Raven pleaded once more, "You don't know what can happen!"_

_"Get everybody back in the house! Lock all the doors and stay put!"_

_Qrow was through listening. He had to end this Brawnz situation, once and for all. With that, most of the group went back into the Xiao Long farm. Meanwhile, Qrow, Ironwood, Ren, and Cinder made their way into the forest to catch themselves a loose marauder._

_Deep in the forest, Qrow, Ren, and Cinder turned to Ironwood to get more details on his encounter with the fugitive. Ironwood stepped up, improvising the story as he went along._

_"I saw him head up through the trees that way before I blacked out," Ironwood lied, pointing in the direction where he and Brawnz had been walking earlier, "I'm not sure how long."_

_"He couldn't have gotten far," Qrow said, "He's hobbled, exhausted."_

_"And armed," Lie Ren groaned._

_"Hey, so are we. Cinder, can you track him?"_

_Cinder Fall started scanning the ground, her bow still drawn in case any Grimm, walkers, or armed marauders came by. Much to her surprise...nothing. Absolutely nothing. As if no one was in the area._

_"No, I don't see nothing." Cinder Fall replied, keeping her eyes to where the supposed tracks should've been._

_Ironwood, getting antsy at the possibility that Cinder would figure out his schemes, stepped in front of the group._

_"Hey, look, there ain't no use in tracking him, okay?!" Ironwood shouted, "He went that way! We just need to pair up, spread out, and just chase him down! That's it!"_

_Cinder looked at Ironwood...unimpressed. Something about all of this felt off to her._

_"Kid weighs a buck-25, soaking wet," she said straight to Ironwood's face, "You trying to tell us he got the jump on you?"_

_"I say a rock pretty much evens those odds, wouldn't you-"_

_"-alright, knock it off," Qrow interrupted, "Cinder and Ren, y'all two start heading up the right flank. Me and James will take the left. Now remember...Brawnz is not the only threat out there. Keep an eye out for each other." With that, the four split up._

_Unbeknownst to Qrow, Ironwood never took his eyes off of him._

_/_

_/_

_A few hours into the journey into the woods, Qrow starts to suspect something is off with Ironwood. It didn't seem like he was trying to find Brawnz Ni. To him, it looked like he was scoping out the area._

_But for what reason?_

_/_

_/_

_"Does this way feel right," Qrow asked, trying to avoid sounding as if he were suspicious of Ironwood. Ironwood simply turned around to face Qrow._

_"As right as any," Ironwood said._

_Qrow still couldn't get rid of the bad vibes he was getting from Ironwood. There was something really off about this whole hunt, something that his huntsman side was telling him. Ironwood's body language just felt wrong, like he was hiding something from him._

_"So...snatched your gun, huh?" Qrow asked. He was going to get answers, one way or another._

_Ironwood didn't seem to pick up on Qrow's intentions. "Yeah," he said back, "It's my favorite piece too. Gonna wish he'd-he'd kill me when I find his sorry ass."_

_And right there...Qrow knew he was lying. He wouldn't look him in the eyes, he kept on fidgeting, and he even stuttered on his own words. At that moment, he didn't know whether to be angry or just upset that he was being manipulated._

_"Go on," Ironwood said, urging Qrow to move up. Qrow did just that, moving up. And as he moved forward, only one thought was present in his mind._

**_This son of a bitch is trying to kill me._ **

* * *

NOW

Qrow and Ironwood exited the forest into a field that was across from the Xiao Long farm. It was a wide, open field with cut grass. Something you'd see cows casually grazing over. 

"You say he got you with a rock?" Qrow asked. He didn't need to ask anymore questions at this point but he wanted Ironwood to admit what he was doing. It was obvious at this point but still, he needed to hear him say it. 

"That's what I said," Ironwood replied back.

"Inside the shed?" Qrow resisted the urge to laugh, realizing just how laughable Ironwood's cover story really was. If he had only paid better attention, he could've called him out on all the contradictions. Cinder caught them but he didn't listen. 

Ironwood didn't reply back. At this point, he knew that Qrow knew. 

"Because that door was shut when Flynt Coal rolled up," Qrow continued.

"I saw that too. Must've slipped through the rafters in the roof."

Qrow sighed and stopped walking, not even bothering to confront him on that obvious lie. Ironwood stopped as well, feeling the inevitable coming. Both men stood off against each other, Qrow's back turned to Ironwood while Ironwood kept his eyes focused on Qrow. There were no Grimm, no walkers, no other people in the area. They were alone.

Qrow holstered his gun. _If he's not gonna come out and say it...might as well force him to admit it._

"So this is where you planned on doing it," Qrow growled. 

Ironwood didn't immediately respond back. He then said, "It's as good place as any."

_And there's the admission, you son of a bitch._

Qrow turned to face Ironwood, man-to-man. "At least have the balls to call this what it is; murder," he said.

Ironwood's face didn't budge from the "m" word. Instead, all he did was pull out the gun he got from Flynt Coal. He didn't raise it yet but just seeing the gun out pissed Qrow off even more. Qrow began to move, circling Ironwood, the feeling of betrayal just now starting to hit him. 

"You really believe if you walk back onto that farm alone, no me, no Brawnz-"

"-Qrow, I want you to hush up-"

"-you really believe they're gonna buy whatever BULLSHIT story you cook up?!"

"That's just it. It ain't no story."

That stopped Qrow. He stopped in his tracks and stared right at Ironwood, wanting to know what the man meant by his words.

"I saw that prisoner shoot you down," Ironwood said as if he was trying to convince himself with his own lie, "I ran after him...I snapped his neck. It ain't gonna be easy. But Summer and Ruby will get over you. They've done it before...they're just gonna have to." And at that, Ironwood raised his gun up to Qrow's head.

Qrow gritted his teeth, not even trying to hide his anger anymore. "Why!?" he shouted, "Why now? I thought we worked this all out-"

Ironwood laughed. "-We tried to kill each other man!" he shouted at Qrow, "What did you think? We were just gonna forget about it all? We gonna ride off into the sunset together?"

"So you're gonna kill me in cold blood? Screw my wife, and have my children-MY CHILDREN-call you daddy, is that what you want?!" 

Those words got to Ironwood. He started to growl in anger at the mention of Summer and Ruby. He felt as if Qrow was dangling them in front of his face, taunting him that they weren't really his family.

"That life won't be worth a damn," Qrow continued, "I know you...you won't be able to live with this." 

With those words, Ironwood finally had enough. He lowered his gun and glared at Qrow. There was nothing but hatred in his eyes. 

"What do you know about what I can live with?" Ironwood shouted, "You got NO IDEA what I can live with, what I'll LIVE WITH! You wanna talk about what I can do, Qrow? How about what you can do? Here I am!"

Ironwood quickly holstered his gun and raised his arms up, as if he was inviting Qrow to shoot him. Qrow, however, saw through his act. _He's just baiting you, don't fall for it._

"Come on man, raise your gun!"

"No," Qrow replied back, shaking his head as he did, "No I will not-"

"-what happened, Qrow, I thought you weren't the 'good guy' anymore, ain't that what you said! Even right here, right now, you ain't gonna fight for her? I'm a better father than you, Qrow! I'm better for Summer than you, man! Why? Because I'm a better man than you, Qrow. Because I can be here and I'll fight for her. But...you just come back here and DESTROY EVERYTHING!" 

Though harsh words...Qrow wondered if Ironwood was actually wrong about what he said about him. He thought back to all the decisions he made in the group and all the people he failed. Would Vernal and Lionheart still be alive had he made a different choice? Could he really lead the group? Qrow wondered if he and the people around him were just doomed to suffer misfortune, no matter where they went. 

"You got a broken woman," Ironwood snarled, "You got a weak girl. And you ain't got the first clue to how to fix it!"

Qrow looked away. Ironwood was cutting deep now. 

As Qrow pondered about his life, Ironwood raised his gun up once again. He then urged Qrow to raise his gun up as well. Qrow was surprised by that; even though Ironwood was trying to murder him, he was still worried about his conscience. He wanted to shoot Qrow on equal terms.

_And I'm gonna deny him that._

"You're gonna have to kill an unarmed man," Qrow said, watching Ironwood start to show signs of hesitation. As Ironwood watched, Qrow raised his arms up, then slowly began to reach for his gun to surrender. "Watch my hand. Easy...easy does it." Qrow grabbed his revolver, then held it out to Ironwood, making sure he was presenting the gun in a way that showed he meant no harm.

"Now listen to me James," Qrow said as he slowly walked over to Ironwood, "There is still a way back from this. Nothing has happened here. And we are gonna lay down our guns...and we're gonna walk back to the farm. Together. Back to Summer. Back to Ruby. Put this all behind us."

Qrow managed to get close to Ironwood. Ironwood, after hearing what Qrow had to say, didn't know how to respond. Just based on the fact he still hasn't shot Qrow told Qrow that he was having second thoughts about his murder scheme. Slowly, Qrow handed his gun over to Ironwood. Ironwood, seeing the gun, reached over to take it-

**SHLICK!**

Qrow shouted as he took out his pocket knife and stabbed Ironwood right in the heart. A gunshot went off but Qrow was able to push Ironwood's arm away, avoiding the hit. Ironwood gasped and grunted as he fell to the ground. By the time he did, his entire chest was covered in blood. 

"DAMN YOU FOR MAKING ME DO THIS, JAMES," Qrow shouted, trying not to cry as he watched his former best friend fade away, "THIS WAS YOU. NOT ME. YOU DID THIS TO US! THIS WAS YOU, NOT ME. NOT ME!"

Qrow pulled the knife out. As he did, James looked at his wound and Qrow in shock. It looked like he didn't expect Qrow to have it in him to do this. 

As Ironwood started to die, Qrow couldn't hold back the tears. He hated this man...but at the end of the day, he was still his friend. This was the man who got Summer and Ruby out of Vale City before the walkers took it over. And this was the man who tried his best to get Qrow out of the city while he was still in a coma. Despite everything, Qrow didn't have it in him to fully hate Ironwood. He could only hate what he had become as a result of this new world. 

Qrow held Ironwood close as he died. Once Ironwood breathed his last breath...Qrow let the tears out. His best friend was gone...from his own hand. 

/

/

A few minutes had passed since Ironwood died. Qrow still couldn't believe what he had just done. He had to do it to survive, Ironwood was clearly out of his mind, but still, he felt dirty. As he caught his breath, trying to calm himself from the stress of the situation, he heard a voice from behind him.

"Dad?" 

Qrow turned around and saw Ruby. She was whimpering, scared stiff from what she was seeing. Her father, standing over the body of James Ironwood. She was confused and felt like vomiting.

Qrow walked over to her, unable to hide the fact that he was panicking on the inside. _She wasn't supposed to see this. She should never have seen this._ Qrow could only imagine just what kind of impact this would have on the girl.

"Ruby," Qrow stammered out, "No...no, you should be back home with mom-"

Qrow stopped talking when Ruby Rose raised her gun. _Oh no...does she know that I killed James? Is she mad at me? Does she think I'm gonna hurt her?_ Qrow could only watch as his daughter refused to lower her gun. 

Unbeknownst to Qrow, Ironwood had just reanimated behind him. Ruby Rose began to cry as she saw the now-zombified James Ironwood walk over to her father, who had no idea what was going on behind him. 

_Turn around, dad, turn around!_ Ruby wanted to shout these words at but found that she was too scared to even speak. 

"Ruby, just put the gun down," Qrow said, the tears coming back to him, "It's not what it seems. Please-"

**BANG!**

Qrow winced as Ruby let a gunshot off. However, when he realized he wasn't hit, he turned around and saw that Ruby was aiming for Ironwood. 

_He turned...but that means...oh no._

Ruby watched as Qrow kneeled down to Ironwood's corpse. He had a look on his face that she didn't quite understand, as if he knew something that she didn't.

For Qrow, this confirmed something he was told when the group was hiding out in one of Vale's research laboratories. 

They were all infected. It didn't matter if you were bitten or not...once you die...you turn.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Based on: The Walking Dead, season 2, episode 12 (Better Angels)
> 
> Notes for this AU:
> 
> 1) As you can tell, this AU is going with the fan theory that Qrow is Ruby's biological father. So Ruby and Yang aren't sisters in this verse, which makes sense since Ruby is Carl Grimes and Yang is Maggie Greene.
> 
> 2) Speaking of the Greene family, I'm aware there is no Beth counterpart since Taiyang never had another kid with Raven. If this AU were to continue, I'm a little tempted to make a minor RWBY character into our Beth stand-in. Someone like Neon Katt or any member of NDGO.
> 
> 3) If I had to pick, Winter Schnee would be the Michonne of this AU. It's not too far off from TWD...Rick and Michonne used to hate/distrust each other before falling in love. So it wouldn't be too much of a stretch to start Qrow and Winter off as enemies before becoming lovers.
> 
> 4) Yes, I'm fully aware that I used James Ironwood for two Jon Bernthal characters (Punisher, Shane Walsh)
> 
> 5) Raven was renamed since Rick and Carol aren't siblings. Hullum comes from Raven's voice actress, Anna Hullum


	11. When the A Cappella Group Already Has One Faunus

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Blake and Velvet clash when they realize they've both joined the same a cappella group...

Setting: Beacon Academy, rec room 

Time: Afternoon

The Beacon Academy all-girls a cappella team were rehearsing for an upcoming show. The line-up went as follows: Yang was at one end as the lead, Pyrrha was next to her as the bass singer, then after her was Ruby, Weiss, Nora, Coco, Penny, and Blake at the other end. After doing a quick warm-up, Yang started snapping her fingers and the girls began to get into the beat. 

Yang started. "1, 2-"

"DO BA DO DOOM DOOM," Pyrrha followed in with her bass line. And just like that, all eight girls started singing their song.

"There goes the girl...who owns my heart," Yang sang out, still keeping rhythm with her snaps, "I knew she was the one...right from the start!"

"Our love is here to stay...each and every day...we know that we will never part!"

"BOH, BA-DO-BO-BO-BOWWWW," Blake scatted out, ending the song. The rest of the team clapped, loving Blake's little ending notes. 

"Oh, wow!" Yang cheered, "Great work everybody! Blake, I love that little Motown outro thing you did! Super soulful!"

"Cool, thanks Yang," Blake said, trying to shrug off the compliments, "Yeah, it just...uh...came to me, so I went with it."

Yang looked visibly impressed. Even the other girls were shocked, as if Blake had cured cancer and was trying to downplay her achievements.

"Wow," Yang said to Pyrrha, "That's crazy." 

As the girls continued to heap praises onto Blake, the doors to the room opened. Everyone turned around and saw a familiar pair of bunny ears enter through the doors. Velvet Scarlatina walked in and, after putting her camera away, turned to the group.

"Hey, is this where the a cappella group meets?" she asked, innocently. The girls looked at each other, apparently not expecting any new additions to the team. Except for Yang, that is.

"Oh hey, Velvet," Yang said as she waved Velvet over.

"Hey Yang!" Velvet chirped, "What's going on, girl!?"

"Velvet, get over here!"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah."

"Girls, this is my friend Velvet. She just transferred from Haven Academy. I thought she could sit in on a few practices. I don't know...maybe join the group, who knows?"

"Hey now! Only a maybe!"

As Velvet shook hands with the other girls, Blake could only watch this newbie with...caution. _No...she's not...no...she can't be doing what I think she's doing..._

After Velvet took a spot next to Yang in the line-up, Yang clapped her hands and said, "All right ladies, let's do 'Always Been My Girl' again, from the top." 

"'Always Been My Girl,' okay," Velvet said to herself in order to psyche herself up for the song.

"Oh, and Velvet? Show the team here your stuff!"

"You got it, Yang!"

Blake resisted the urge to glare at Velvet. _This...this...this bunny...she really is doing what I think she's doing!_

"All right guys," Yang said again, "Ready? Okay...1...2-"

"DO BA DO DOOM DOOM," Pyrrha came in again with her bass line. 

"There goes the girl...who owns my heart...I knew she was the one...right from the start! Our love is here to stay...each and every day...we know that we will never part!"

"BOH, BA-DO-BO-BO-BOWWWW," Blake scatted out once again. _Alright, at least I still got it. Top that, Miss Scarlatina-_

"OOH-WEE-EE-OOH!" Velvet sang out in an almost falsetto voice. Blake frowned as not only did Velvet sing those words out...she did a little dance, and even threw in a spin just to impress the group. Then...she pointed her fingers right at Blake.

_Was that...was she trying to challenge me?_

If she was, Yang and the others didn't notice it. Especially Yang, who was enthusiastically clapping her friends' performance. 

"You've got to be kidding me!" Yang said, congratulating Velvet, "Velvet, that was out of this world!" 

Velvet blushed and shyly looked away from the group, embarrassed from all the praise, "Oh gosh," she said, "It just...um...it came to me! So I just _...went with it."_

Blake flinched when she saw that Velvet looked at her right in the eyes when she said that. Also...she could've sworn that Velvet winked at her.

_There's no way those words were coincidental...she must've been watching me! She knows what she's doing. But that means she's faking the shyness too! This piece of...no, Blake, calm down. She's playing mind games with you now._

Blake and Velvet were now staring each other down. Normally, this would've been cause for alarm for the other girls. But none of them seemed to notice the sudden change in mood.

"Great," Yang said as she started to pack up for the day, "Well, keep going with it! Girls, have a safe weekend, all right! See you all on Monday!"

"Nice to meet you guys," Velvet chirped, not taking her eyes off of Blake, "That was awesome!"

Yang giggled at Velvet's words. "Isn't she the best?!"

The other girls murmured in agreement as they all grabbed their stuff and headed for the door. However, Blake and Velvet decided to hang back. 

"Yeah, I'll check in with you all later," Blake said, briefly moving her eyes away from Velvet to wave goodbye to the other girls. "See you later, alligators." The team nodded and they all soon left the room. 

Both girls felt the room darkened as they were now the only ones left. Velvet's fake smile dropped back into a neutral face while Blake didn't even try to pretend she was happy with Velvet joining the team. After sizing each other up, Blake and Velvet walked towards each other. 

Blake sighed, frustrated, when she was face-to-face with Velvet. "The fuck you think you doing, bunny?" she said. Just to show how frustrated she was, she dropped her "choir girl" / "school girl" voice aka the voice she put on when she was around humans. No need to hide when around a fellow faunus. 

Velvet just chuckled. "I'm doing my thing...kitty cat," she retorted, "The fuck you doing?" She looked Blake right in the eyes as she said that, just to show her how serious she was. And like Blake...she dropped her "choir girl" / "school girl" voice as well. 

"See," Blake said, pointing her fingers as if to make a point, "This here...is my seven human girls, rabbit. You need to back the _fuck_ up." 

Velvet just scoffed at that, unimpressed and unintimidated. 

"Fuck. That. Housecat." Velvet snapped back, "I'm 'bouts to get mine."

"Do you have any idea how long it took for me to infiltrate this group, bunny?"

Velvet just shrugged, not knowing the answer.

"25 minutes," Blake answered, "You think I'm gonna roll over...for some _falsetto-ass motherfucker?"_

Velvet dropped her smirk. Now she was getting pissed. "Well, you know what, kitty," Velvet said as she pretended to brush away some dirt on Blake's shirt, further pissing Blake off, "Human girls are gonna do...what human girls are gonna do. And if they wanna run with a _high-ass, singing falsetto rabbit_...then that's on them." 

Velvet chuckled as she moved past Blake to the door, brushing against Blake's shoulder as she did. Blake turned, her eyes wide as she glared right at Velvet.

"Oh, that's on them, then?" Blake growled.

"Yeah, that's on them then!"

"Okay, so it's like that?!"

"Oh, it's SO LIKE THAT!"

"WELL, WATCH YOUR BACK, BUNNY RABBIT!"

"Ha, okay." Velvet rolled her eyes as she walked out the door.

"YOU HEARD ME?! WATCH YOUR BACK, BUNNY RABBIT! CAUSE YOU FUCK WITH MY SHIT...I FUCK WITH YOUR SHIT!"

* * *

Setting: Beacon Academy, the Improv Club's meeting room

Time: A few hours later...

"Oh it's so cold out, and it's going to be dark soon!" 

The improv class watched as Pyrrha Nikos walked onto the stage and pretended to be shivering. As she did, Velvet Scarlatina, who was also part of the class, joined the scene as well.

"Oh my Oum! Yeah, we should build a fire!" Velvet and Pyrrha then got on their knees and pretended to start a fire in their scene. After a few minutes of pretending to rub imaginary sticks together, Velvet shouted out fire and Pyrrha backed away, pretending that an inferno was in front of her.

Before Pyrrha could continue the scene, Jaune Arc tagged her out and entered the scene. He then walked up to Velvet, who had her hands up, still pretending that there was a fire in front of her.

"Oh no!" Jaune screamed frantically, "Aunt Jane's developed cat ears!"

"Hey man!" Velvet shouted back, " _What's wrong with cat ears on a person?!"_

Velvet said that last line sarcastically. As expected, her human friends started laughing at her faunus joke. The thing is, she knew what she was doing. _Humans LOVE claiming they have nothing against faunus...but then will laugh their asses off at faunus jokes. But apparently, it's all good since a faunus was the one who said the joke. Typical humans._

Playing along with the scene, Velvet pretended to throw a punch at Jaune. But as she did...she felt a hand touch her on the back. She turned...and saw Blake Belladonna with a devious smirk on her face. Blake pushed Velvet back and continued with the same motion that Velvet was doing with her fist. Velvet, confused, stepped back to see what Blake had in mind.

"Man," Blake started, putting on her "choir girl" voice, " _I guess I got to put my tail away_!" Then, in one smooth motion, pretended to put her "cat tail" away with her hand that was closed in a fist. 

As the humans laughed at another faunus joke, Blake turned around to see that Velvet was not enjoying any of her antics. Blake could only smirk as Velvet walked towards her. She could almost feel the dark aura coming off of Velvet.

_You mad? Well...stay mad._

* * *

**STOP**

**FAUNUS-ON-FAUNUS VIOLENCE**

**(paid for by Citizens Against Faunus-on-Faunus Crime)**

_(from the DVD commentary)_

Adam Taurus: "I just want to say, the White Fang was the original creators of this sketch. Yeah, no joke. It was part of Sienna's push to spread the White Fang message through other means besides violence. I wanted to do a horror movie, Blake wanted to do an erotic thriller, but everyone else wanted to do a comedy. So, we wrote up a sketch, which was the one we just saw but with a lot of scenes cut. We were gonna produce the original but, due to creative differences with the studio execs, the sketch had to be re-written. Apparently, it was too 'offensive' for human audiences-"

Blake Belladonna: "-Adam, the original script had me and Velvet kill all our classmates, then declare that Beacon was conquered for the faunus."

Adam Taurus: "...well, I thought it was funny." 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Based on: When the A Cappella Group Already Has One Black Guy (feat. Bo Burnham) - Key & Peele sketch
> 
> Another short one! I'll say this, the next chapter will be pretty long since it'll be an adaptation of an entire episode. Of which show? Well...I won't say the name but friendship is important to the whole show.


	12. The One Where all the Huntsmen and Huntresses Find Out

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ruby and Jaune are secretly seeing each other on the side. And Weiss and Blake are hellbent on getting them to admit it to the group...

Setting: Ruby and Weiss' apartment in downtown City of Vale

Time: Afternoon

"Hey you guys, look, Ugly Naked Guy is putting stuff in boxes!"

As soon as Ruby, Jaune, Weiss, Neptune, and Yang heard Blake's words, they got up and rushed over to the windows to view the apartment across the street.

"Huh," Weiss said as she peered out the window, "I'd say from the looks of it, our naked buddy's moving."

Sure enough, the man across from them was moving. For Ruby and Weiss, they started feeling sad, seeing their long-time, quasi-neighbor moving. On the other hand, if they were truly being honest with themselves...they were also relieved that they wouldn't see Professor Peter Port's naked self anymore. 

"Ironically, most of the boxes seem to be labeled 'clothes'," Yang pointed out. 

"Aww," Weiss pouted, "I'm gonna miss that old, squishy butt." _Well...not really. Maybe just for nostalgia?_

"And we're done with the chicken fried rice," Jaune groaned as he now couldn't get the image of naked Peter Port out of his mind. 

As Jaune put his food away, Yang immediately stepped back as an idea started forming in her head. "Hey," she said, almost a little too excited, "If he's moving, then maybe I should try to get his place!" 

Ruby, Jaune, Blake, Weiss, and Neptune enthusiastically agreed. They felt bad for Yang; not too long ago, she had botched her wedding vows by saying the wrong name at the altar. 

* * *

_FLASHBACK:_

_"Now Yang," the priest had said, "Repeat after me. 'I, Yang'."_

_"I, Yang," Yang repeated._

_"Take thee, Emerald." Emerald Sustrai smiled as the priest mentioned her name._

_"Take thee, Weiss."_

_Immediately, Yang's face dropped. Emerald's smile turned to a frown. Ruby, Jaune, Blake, and Neptune began looking around for a place to hide. Weiss could only stare in disbelief._

* * *

Now, ever since she got kicked out of her apartment by Emerald, Yang needed a place to live.

"It would be so cool to live across from you guys!" Yang said, now fully onboard with this plan. 

"Yeah, then we can do that scroll thing!" Neptune said. Jaune looked at him, confused.

"You know, where you have a can and we have a can and it's connected by a string!" Neptune looked proud at what he just rambled about while Jaune was internally facepalming himself. 

"Or we could do the ACTUAL scroll thing," Jaune said. 

* * *

**F.R.I.E.N.D.S.**

_**♫ So no one told you life was gonna be this way- ♫** _

_**(cut to Yang punching a punching bag as the clapping noises)** _

**CAST**

**WEISS SCHNEE (counterpart: Rachel Green)**

**RUBY ROSE (counterpart: Monica Geller)**

**BLAKE BELLADONNA (counterpart: Phoebe Buffay)**

**NEPTUNE VASILIAS (counterpart: Joey Tribbiani)**

**JAUNE ARC (counterpart: Chandler Bing)**

**YANG XIAO LONG (counterpart: Ross Geller)**

**♫ _Because you're there for me too..._ ♫**

* * *

Setting: Apartment of Ugly Naked Guy a.k.a. Peter Port

Time: Few minutes later

"Oh my Oum, I love this apartment!" Yang said as she moved around the living room. It was spacious, had a good view of the city...what was there not to like? "Isn't it perfect!? I can't believe I never realized how great it is!" she happily said to Weiss and Blake, who were also looking around the place.

"Well, that is because your eye immediately goes to the big naked man!" Weiss retorted. Yang shrugged, she couldn't deny that. 

"It's amazing," Blake said, lost in her own world, "You better hurry up and fill out an application or I'm gonna beat you to it."

Yang chuckled. _Oh come on kitty kat, don't joke with me-_

Yang's heart nearly dropped when Blake made a move to the door, as if she was going to fill out her application at that very moment. Not willing to take a risk, Yang ran out the apartment to fill out the form. 

As Yang exited the apartment, Weiss looked over to Blake and said, "Well, I never thought I'd say this but I'm gonna use Ugly Naked Guy's bathroom."

Blake nodded at her as Weiss left as well. Feeling curious about how Ruby and Weiss' apartment looked from this side of the street, Blake walked over to the window. Unsurprisingly, she saw Ruby and Jaune across the street. For some reason, they told the group that they wanted to stay behind and that they would see Ugly Naked Guy's apartment some other time. The group didn't think much of it (aside from Weiss and Neptune).

"Oh hey, it's Ruby and Jaune," Blake happily said, "I wonder what they're talking about over there-"

Blake's face dropped and her nose started bleeding immediately when she saw what happened next.

Ruby unbuttoned Jaune's pants.

Jaune unbuttoned Ruby's shirt and tugged it off of her. 

_What...the...HELL?!?!_

"Oh...oh...oh my OUM!" Blake stammered out. After quickly taking out her notebook and writing a note to herself, she went back to staring at the couple as they continued to... _do it._

"Oh-oh-oh-oh!"

Weiss, who had just gotten out of the bathroom, walked over to Blake, confused as to why she was freaking out. _Huh, I wonder what she's seeing in my apartment-OH MY OUM!_

"Jaune and Ruby! Jaune and Ruby!" Blake shouted at Weiss.

"Oh my Oum!" Weiss shouted back.

"OHHHHH! JAUNE AND RUBY!"

"OH MY OUM!"

"OH-OH-OH-OH MY EYES! MY EYES!" Blake walked away, trying to blink out what she had just seen transpire. As she did, Weiss ran over to her, trying to calm her down.

She knew what was going on. If only Ruby had paid better attention to their wall-scroll. 

* * *

_FLASHBACK_

_Needing to make a call, Weiss picked up the wall-scroll in the living room. Before she could dial, she heard Ruby's voice on the other end._

_"I can't wait to be with you," Ruby said. Weiss chuckled, imagining her partner with a big grin as she said those words. "I'll sneak over as soon as Yang picks up Summer. I'll just tell Weiss that I'll be doing laundry for a couple of hours."_

**_Oh...that's what you meant by laundry. You sneaky dolt._ **

_The next voice made Weiss frown. **No...that can't be-**_

_"Laundry, huh," Jaune said on the other end, "That my new nickname?" Weiss put her hand to her mouth in complete shock._

_"Aww...you know what your nickname is, Mr. Big-"_

_"WAAHHHH!"_

_Weiss hung up immediately not wanting to hear the rest._

* * *

"BLAKE! BLAKE, IT'S OKAY! IT'S OKAY!" Weiss shouted at her.

"NO, THEY'RE DOING IT!" Blake shouted back as she pointed right at Jaune and Ruby. 

"I KNOW! I KNOW!"

"YOU KNOW!?!?" Blake shouted at her, her eyes wide.

"YES I KNOW, AND NEPTUNE KNOWS, BUT YANG DOESN'T KNOW, SO YOU HAVE TO STOP SCREAMING!"

"Huh, what's going on?"

Weiss and Blake nearly flipped out when Yang suddenly came back from the lobby. Before Blake could spill the beans, Weiss turned to Yang and began to cheer for her. Yang looked at Weiss, confused.

"Uh, Weiss-cream, you okay?" Yang asked, concerned.

"Nothing!" Weiss said as she conveniently moved to the other side of the room, making sure Yang's focus was on her and _not_ the window, "I'm just so excited that you might get this apartment!"

"Actually, it looks really good," Yang said as she turned back to the window. As Weiss started to panic, Blake picked up on what Weiss was doing and started cheering as well.

"Oh, it looks really good! Woo!" Blake cheered as she joined Weiss, keeping Yang's attention on them. "Come on, get in here Yang!"

 _Oh...what the hell!_ Not suspecting a thing, Yang started to jump up and down and "celebrated" alongside Weiss and Blake. 

* * *

Setting: The Quill and Ink Restaurant, downtown City of Vale

Time: Few minutes later 

"You mean whenever Ruby and Jaune were doing laundry or going grocery shopping or-(gasps) all that time Ruby spent on the scroll talking to Sad Velvet from camp?"

Blake still couldn't wrap her head around what she had just seen. Her two long-time friends, Jaune and Ruby, were... _together._ Or at the very least, were in some sort of friends-with-benefits agreement. This was incredible to her since she would never have guessed. After getting the tea and fish she ordered from the front, she walked over to a nearby couch to talk with Weiss. She had so many questions to ask. 

"Yup," Weiss said with a smirk, "Doing it, doing it...scroll doing it."

"Wow! Ah, I can't believe it! Well, I think it's great." As soon as she said that, she then started to really consider this match-up. _Our brave team leader...and the skinny guy who forged his papers to get into the school._ "Okay, at least for him...Ruby might be able to do better."

Weiss slightly frowned at this while Blake just shrugged it off. 

As if on cue, Neptune Vasilias entered the Quill and Ink. He greeted them as he made his way to a nearby chair. Seeing him, Weiss eagerly turned to his direction, wanting to tell him all about what happened today. 

"Oh, Neptune!" Weiss said with glee, "Blake just found out about Ruby and Jaune!"

"You mean how they're friends and nothing more?" Neptune said, his look immediately telegraphing that he was lying. Blake rolled her eyes while Weiss resisted the urge to facepalm. 

"No, Neptune," Weiss sternly said, "She _knows._ We were at Ugly Naked Guy's apartment and we saw them doing it through the window."

 _And I REALLY wish I could scrub that memory from my brain!_ Weiss managed to stop herself from cringing while Neptune's mouth dropped in shock. 

"Actually," Weiss continued, her face turning a little green from this part of the memory, "We saw them doing it _up against_ the window." Weiss made a mental note to herself to disinfect her apartment's window as soon as she went home. 

"Okay," Blake said, "So now they know that you know but they don't know that Weiss knows?"

Neptune paused for a second, trying to make sure that Blake's map was correct. After doing the necessary calculations, Neptune nodded and said, "Yes, but you know what, that doesn't matter anymore! Now that enough of us know, we can just tell them we know! Now all the lying and secrets will finally be over!"

Suddenly, a devious smirk formed on Blake's face. A dark idea started forming in Blake's head. _Oh, I am so going to enjoy this._

"Or," Blake said, "We can not tell them we know... _and have a little fun of our own._ "

Neptune frowned while Weiss turned to Blake, confused. She had no idea what was going on in Blake's head and she was a little scared to ask.

"What do you mean?" Weiss asked.

"Well, you know every time they say they're going to do laundry...we'll just give them a bunch of laundry to do!"

Suddenly, Weiss started smiling. She loved her roommate...but she couldn't stand her at times. This would be an amazing way to mess with her. "Oh, I would enjoy that," Weiss chirped. 

Neptune was less than thrilled. "No, no, no," Neptune said, "You know what would be more fun? Telling them!" 

"Yeah...no, I'm gonna do Blake's thing," Weiss said.

"Come on Weiss, I can't take anymore of this-"

"You don't have to do anything," Blake said, trying to reassure Neptune, "Just don't tell them that we know!" 

"No!" Neptune said, getting a little agitated, "I can't take anymore secrets! I've got your secrets, I've got their secrets, hell, I've got secrets of my own, you know!"

Weiss rolled her eyes. "You don't have any secrets."

"Oh yeah? Well, you don't know about Huggsy, my bedtime penguin pal-"

Neptune immediately stopped talking when he realized he had said too much. Weiss and Blake just stared at him dully, unimpressed. 

"So," Weiss said to Blake, trying to ignore Neptune, "How are we gonna mess with Jaune and Ruby?"

Blake thought about it for a second. _Hmm...an attack plan for Jaune and Ruby...let me see..._

"Well," Blake started, "You could use your position as the roommate. And then I would use the strongest tool in my disposal...my sexuality."

At that, both Weiss and Neptune eyed Blake, surprised at what she just admitted. Blake just shrugged it off. _What? I know I'm hot. I hear those nicknames about me at school._

"Hey guys."

Weiss, Blake, and Neptune looked up and saw that Jaune Arc had just walked into the restaurant. As he made his way to the counter, Blake turned to Weiss and Neptune with a smirk on her face.

"Now," she said as she stood up, "Watch, learn...and don't eat my fish." 

Blake walked over to Jaune as Weiss and Neptune watched her movements. She started by catching Jaune's attention.

"Hey," she said.

"Oh, hey Blake," Jaune said back to her.

"Oh yeah...whoa, that jacket looks great on you."

"Really?"

 _Got you now._ Blake stepped up and reach for one of Jaune's sleeves. "Yeah, the material looks so soft-oh, hello Mr. Bicep!"

 _Damn, she's really good at this._ Weiss could only stare in amazement as Jaune looked back at Blake, confused. Neptune, on the other hand, just looked away, disappointed in his friends.

"You've been working out?" Blake asked, trying to sound "interested" in Jaune as much she could. 

"Well, I try to, you know, squeeze things-"

Jaune was caught off-guard when Blake started laughing out loud. Maybe a little too hard at his attempt at a joke. Had he been paying closer attention, he would've also noticed that Blake tried to subtly touch his chest while she laughed. 

"You okay, Blake?" 

Blake stopped laughing. "Well, if you really wanna know-oh, I can't tell you this". _Hehehe...this is almost too easy._

"Blake, it's me, you can tell me anything."

"Well, actually, you're the one person I can't tell this to... _and the one person I want to the most_." And that's when she hit Jaune with the most seductive stare she could do. Weiss could only stare in amazement as Blake managed to take full control of the conversation. She was almost a bit _too_ good with that stare. 

However, Jaune wasn't buying it. "What's going on?" he asked. 

"I think it's because I haven't been with a guy in so long and you know how sometimes you're looking for something and you just don't see that it's right there in front of you sipping coffee-"

Blake stopped as Jaune noticed he was sipping coffee. She resisted the urge to smile there, knowing that she was pulling this con off.

"Oh no, have I said too much," Blake said, faking the shock, "Well...just something to think about... _I know I will._ "

Once again, Jaune was caught off-guard by Blake's tone. _Is she...is she trying to seduce me? No, that can't be right, this is Blake, she's not interested in me-_

"Oop!" 

Jaune's brain started to melt when he saw Blake slightly "trip" on the couch. As she did, she leaned forward, giving him a full view of her..."Bellabooty". Blake then casually walked out of the restaurant, a smile on her face for a job well done.

Weiss and Neptune knew exactly what she was doing. Weiss almost wanted to clap. All the fake seducing and laughing, then to top it all off, a butt tease. Weiss wondered if Blake picked up all of these techniques from the romance novels she reads. Meanwhile, Neptune, even though he was still upset, couldn't help but be impressed as well. He was also surprised that Jaune was able to resist all of Blake's advances.

* * *

Setting: Jaune and Neptune's apartment

Time: Night 

Jaune and Ruby were cuddling together for the night. Ruby giggled as she scooted in closer to Jaune's chest while Jaune was lost in thought over what happened earlier that day.

_What was going on with Blake today? Was she being serious?_

"You are so cute!" Ruby chirped, breaking Jaune's concentration, "How did you get to be so cute?"

"Well," Jaune said, "My grandfather was Valean...and my grandmother was actually a tiny, little bunny. And no, not a faunus joke."

Ruby didn't seem to hear that last part and just giggled as she leaned in to kiss him. "And now you're even cuter!"

"Hmm...you know, that is a popular opinion today, I must say."

Immediately, Ruby's face dropped as she was confused as to what Jaune was trying to get at. "What do you mean?" Ruby asked.

"Weirdest thing happened at Quill and Ink. I think Blake was hitting on me."

Ruby's eyebrow furrowed, not believing what Jaune was saying. "What are you talking about?"

"I'm telling you, Blake thinks I'm foxy!" 

"That's...not possible."

 _Thanks Ruby, way to bring a guy down._ "Ow," Jaune said jokingly. Ruby, realizing her goof, chuckled in embarrassment. 

"I'm sorry, Jauney," Ruby continued, "It's just Blake's always thought you were charming in a...in a...sexless kind of way!" 

"Oh, you know, I can't hear that enough!" Jaune stared at Ruby dully while Ruby rolled her eyes at him.

"I'm sorry, I just think you misunderstood her."

 _No, I'm pretty sure I didn't! There's no way!_ Jaune sat up as Ruby scooched over on the bed to face him. At first, she thought he was just goofing around or trying to set her up for a joke. But the way he wanted to keep this topic going was starting to concern her.

"No," Jaune said, "I didn't misunderstand, okay! She was all over me! She touched my bicep for crying out loud!" 

Ruby pinched his bicep...now even more confused and skeptical at the idea that Blake was attracted to him. "This bicep?" Ruby pointed out.

"Well, it's not flexed right now!" Jaune whined, defensively. 

* * *

Setting: Ruby and Weiss' apartment

Time: Morning, the next day

Weiss and Blake were in the living room area, Weiss reading the newspaper and Blake going through another novel that she refused to share with the group. In the kitchen area was Jaune Arc, who was also reading the newspaper. Although he lived across from them, Weiss and Ruby had let him in so he could hang out. 

As they minded their own business, Ruby entered the room and quickly walked past them. Weiss and Blake quickly exchanged glances, curious to see what Ruby had in mind for today. 

"Hey Ruby," Weiss said, looking up from her paper, "What are you doing tonight? You wanna come see a movie with us?"

Ruby stopped, suddenly nervous. Immediately, Weiss and Blake picked up on what Ruby was thinking of. 

"Uhh," Ruby stammered, "You know, actually, I was going to do some laundry." 

"Oh," Blake said. She quickly looked at Weiss who looked back at her. They were both thinking the same thing; _Our leader is not slick._

"Jaune!" Ruby said as she turned to him, "You want do it with me?"

"Sure," Jaune said, almost a bit too happily, "I'll do it with you!" 

_These two are so bad at code words._ Weiss resisted the urge to facepalm as she saw Jaune and Ruby gaze at each other. While sweet, it annoyed her that they were trying to keep their relationship a secret. And now...it was time for some sweet payback. 

"Okay, great, hold on a sec!" Weiss said as she stood up and walked over to her bedroom. Ruby and Jaune turned to her, confused. 

Their faces dropped when Weiss came back with a giant bin of clothes. After exaggerating how heavy the bin was, Weiss plopped the bin on the couch and looked up to Ruby and Jaune with a big grin on her face. 

"You don't mind, do you?" Weiss said, "That would REALLY help me a lot, thanks!" 

"Um," Ruby muttered, trying to not look annoyed, "I don't think I have enough liens for that-"

"-oh, I have liens!" Blake interrupted as she grabbed a bag that was hidden underneath the couch. Much to Ruby and Jaune's dismay, the bag was labeled 'laundry money'. 

Before Ruby and Jaune could complain (and ask if Weiss and Blake coordinated with each other for the laundry), the door to the apartment opened. The four turned around and saw Yang, who was looking anxious. 

"Hey Yang," Weiss said, "Any word on the new apartment yet?"

Yang turned to Weiss, a sudden look of determination on her face. "Well, I called over there," she said, "and it turns out Ugly Naked Guy is subletting it himself and he's already had like a hundred applicants!"

The group started to groan about Yang's chances but Yang held out her hand, as if she had something hidden up her sleeve.

"Oh no, you see...I got the edge," Yang said with confidence, "I know it's not exactly ethical but I sent him a little bribe to tip the scales in my direction. Yeah, check it out, you could probably see it from the window."

Yang ran over to the window while Ruby, Jaune, Weiss, and Blake followed her to see what she was talking about. As they looked over to Peter Port's apartment, Yang's smile gradually sank into a frown. As for the others...they didn't need to think hard to see why she suddenly became upset.

"Oh, is it that pinball machine with the big bow on it?" Ruby said, pointing to the machine in Port's apartment.

"No," Yang muttered.

"That new mountain bike?" Jaune asked.

"...no."

"Well, what did you send?" Ruby asked.

"...a basket of mini muffins."

"Yang, there's a whole table of mini muffin baskets," Blake pointed out, "Which one did you send?"

"...the small one."

"What?!" Weiss said, "You actually thought that basket was gonna get you the apartment?!"

Yang walked away from the window, annoyed. "Well, yeah!" she shouted, her eyes briefly turning red, "Someone sent us a basket at work once and people went crazy over those little muffins! It was the best day!"

"Your work makes me sad," Jaune said, making Yang glare at him. 

"Oh man...I want that place so much! And I was so sure that was gonna work! There's twelve lien I'm never gonna see again." Yang sulked as she walked out of the apartment. 

As soon as Yang left, Weiss looked at the clock and realized that she needed to leave now to catch the movie that she mentioned earlier to Ruby. "Hey Blake," Weiss said, "We better go if we're gonna catch that movie."

Weiss moved quickly, grabbing her stuff as she made her way to the front door. As she said her goodbyes to Ruby and Jaune, Blake walked up to Jaune from behind. Weiss' eyes widened when she saw Blake go back into her "seduction" mode.

"Bye Jaune," Blake purred at him, " _I miss you already._ "

Jaune's mouth dropped when he felt Blake pinch him on the butt. Ruby almost collapsed, having seen what Blake was doing. She didn't have time to confront her as Blake quickly moved out of the apartment, closing the door behind her. Jaune, though, felt vindicated. He wasn't misunderstanding her!

"Okay, did you see that, with the inappropriate and the pinching!" Jaune shouted to Ruby, who was still trying to process what just happened. 

"Actually...I did," Ruby said.

"So now do you believe that she's attracted to me?"

_I mean...I guess she is? There's no other reason why she would pinch Jaune-Jaune's butt. Or maybe she's playing a joke on him and isn't being serious-WAITWAITWAITWHATIFSHE'SNOTBEINGSERIOUS! I didn't even think about that! But if she's not being serious, then why is she messing around with Jaune-_

Ruby suddenly gasped. Jaune, concerned followed her around as Ruby started pacing the room.

"OH MY OUM," Ruby shouted, "OH MY OUM, SHE KNOWS ABOUT US!"

"Are you serious?"

"Blake knows and she's just trying to freak us out! That's the only explanation for it!"

Jaune's face dropped as Ruby made another unintentional jab at his manhood. "Okay, but what about my pinchable butt and my bulging biceps?" Jaune tried to flex...but then quickly realized there wasn't really much to show off.

"She knows!"

* * *

Setting: Jaune and Neptune's apartment

Time: A few minutes later...

Neptune was fast asleep on the living room couch when Jaune and Ruby stormed the apartment.

"Neptune!" Jaune shouted, waking the blue-haired man up. As soon as he opened his eyes, Neptune quickly hid away the penguin plushie he had been hugging as he slept. 

"Blake knows about us," Jaune continued, pointing at Ruby who did not look pleased with him.

"Well, I didn't tell them!" Neptune shouted. His face dropped when Jaune and Ruby's eyes widened at him, catching his slip of the tongue. 

"THEM?" Ruby shouted, "WHO'S THEM?!"

_Ah, nuts, Neptune. You just had to make things worse with your big mouth._

"Uhhhhh," Neptune started, trying to rack his brain for a good answer, "Blake...and Neptune!" _Damn it brain, why did you fail me!?_

"Neptune," Ruby growled.

"...and Weiss! Look, I would've told you but they made me promise not to tell!" 

"Oh, man!" Jaune groaned. 

"I'm sorry! But hey, it's over now, right? Because you could tell them you know they know and I can go back to knowing absolutely nothing!" 

Neptune smiled, hoping that Jaune and Ruby would see things his way. But that's when he saw a devious smirk form on Ruby's face. The same smirk he saw on Blake back at the Quill and Ink. 

"Unless," Ruby started. Neptune, though, wasn't having it.

"No! Not 'unless'! This must end now!"

"Oh, they think they are so slick messing with us! But you see... _they don't know that we know that they know._ "

Neptune could only stare at Ruby in disbelief while Jaune smiled at his girlfriend, already having figured out what she was planning. 

"So-"

"-ah yes," Jaune continued, "The mess-ers...become the mess-ees!"

* * *

Setting: Ruby and Weiss' apartment

Time: Night

Yang groaned as she stared through the window. Using a pair of binoculars, she scanned all of Peter Port's apartment, taking in all the gifts that had been sent over his way. Based on all the gifts in the room, she had to admit that her gift was nothing compared to everything else. 

"Oh, Yang, honey, you gotta stop torturing yourself," Weiss said, not taking her eyes off of her book. Blake and Neptune, who were sitting on the couch, nodded in agreement. 

"Yeah, why don't you just find another apartment?" Blake asked.

"Look," Yang said, moving away from the window in frustration, "I've already looked at, like, a hundred apartments this month and none of them even compares to that one!"

"You know what you should do," Weiss said, putting her book down so she could look at Yang, "You should find out what his hobbies are and use that to bond with him! Yeah, like, if I wanted something from Neptune, I would strike up a conversation about...let's say, um... 'Remnant: The Game'." 

Neptune nodded at the mention of his favorite board game.

"Or, uh, my underwear-" 

"-I'm listening," Neptune interrupted. Weiss just rolled her eyes, regretting that she even brought up that previous example. Although, by doing so, she proved her point. 

"See," Weiss said to Yang, "Works every time."

Yang nodded, having liked what she just saw. Her eyes filled with regained confidence as she looked back at Port's apartment. 

"That is a great idea," Yang happily said, "And...I KNOW Ugly Naked Guy because we've been watching him for, like, five years so that gives me back my edge! Let's see now...he had the trampoline-"

"-he broke that," Blake interrupted.

"Well, he had gravity boots-"

"-yeah, he broke those too," Weiss interrupted.

Neptune put his hand to his chin, his mind deep in thought. "So he likes to break stuff," he said, causing Weiss and Blake to just stare at him dully. 

Yang grabbed her jacket and headed to the front door. "Okay, I've got to go pick up Summer," Yang said as she opened the door, "But I will figure something out. Hmm...say, didn't he used to have a cat?"

"Well, I wouldn't bring that up, it would probably just bum him out," Blake said.

"Yeah...poor cat didn't see that big butt coming," Neptune said, shaking his head. 

As Yang exited the room, Weiss' scroll went off. Picking it up, she saw that it was a call from Jaune. _Interesting...what's going on with the blonde buffoon now?_

"Hello," Weiss answered, "Oh, yeah, hold on a second, she's right here. Blakey...it's Jaune!"

A smirk formed on Blake's face as she took the scroll from Weiss. Neptune could only sigh, still upset about all the secrets his friends were keeping.

"Hello, you," Blake said in the most seductive way she could. 

/

/

Setting: Neptune and Jaune's apartment

Ruby smirked upon hearing Blake's voice. _Two can play this game!_

"Hello, Blake, I've been thinking about you all day," Jaune said, trying his best to match Blake's tone. 

Ruby tried not to giggle at Jaune's acting.

/

/

"HUH?" Blake yelped, dropping her seductive voice. Weiss and Neptune looked back at her, now concerned.

/

/

"Well, you know that thing you said before...I'd be lying if I said I wasn't intrigued."

Jaune looked over at Ruby, who gave him a thumbs up for his Oscar-winning performance. 

/

/

"Really?" Blake replied back, now sweating. 

/

/

"Yeah, listen, Neptune's not gonna be here tonight. So why don't you come over and I'll let you...feel my bicep. _Or maybe more._ "

Ruby rolled her eyes. It was good for the game they were playing but still.

/

/

 _What the hell is going on here?!_ "I'll have to get back to you on that, okay, bye," Blake stammered out as she hung up the scroll. She gave it back to Weiss, who was curious as to what just happened.

"Oh my Oum," Blake said, trying not to panic, "He wants me to come over and feel his bicep and more!" 

Weiss frowned. Jaune was a friend and everyone who knew him would always comment about how he was a good person. To hear that he was planning on cheating on Ruby...it made her sick to her stomach.

"Are you kidding?" Weiss asked, "I cannot believe he would do that to Ruby-" Weiss stopped as she considered a more realistic scenario.

_Wait...this is Jaune Arc we're talking about. The dolt's luck with women is so bad that you would think he had Ruby's uncle's semblance, specifically for his love life. No, he's not gonna cheat on Ruby...which means he's just doing this to mess with Blake...which means-_

Weiss turned to Neptune, who looked away, pretending that he was not part of this situation. 

"Neptune," Weiss growled as she leaned closer to him, "Do they know that we know?"

"...no," Neptune said, obviously lying.

"Neptune!"

"They know you know-"

"-those dolts!" 

Weiss groaned in frustration as Blake pouted, unhappy that she was being played by Jaune and Ruby. 

"I knew it!" Weiss shouted, "I knew Arc didn't have it in him! Oh, I cannot believe those two!"

"They thought that they could mess with us?" Blake said, wanting payback on her two friends, "They're trying to mess with us?! Wait, Weiss... _they don't know that we know they know we know._ "

Neptune facepalmed, completely sick and tired of this back-and-forth. 

"And Neptune, you can't say anything!" 

"Wouldn't even if I wanted to." Neptune sighed as Blake and Weiss began chatting about their next move. 

* * *

Setting: Apartment of Ugly Naked Guy a.k.a. Peter Port

Time: A few minutes later...

_Okay Yang...schmoozing time!_

Yang Xiao Long cleared her throat as she knocked on the door to Peter Port's apartment. She was doing exactly what Weiss told her to do; if you can't win them with bribes, win them over with friendship. 

The door swung open and Yang couldn't help but look down at Peter Port's...hip area. The man was completely naked as he held a cup of "People Like Grapes" soda. 

_Alright Yang...don't vomit now._

"Good evening, sir," Yang started, "My name is Yang Xiao Long, I'm one of the people who applied for the apartment. I realize that the competition is fierce but..." 

Yang trailed off, not even trying to pretend that she couldn't comment on his...figure. However, Yang knew this going in so she worked it in with her plan to schmooze Peter Port. She just prayed that he wouldn't notice her game.

"I'm sorry," Yang said, "I can't help but notice that you're naked." Port raised an eye at that but Yang kept calm. This was the plan.

Yang clapped, catching Port off-guard. _Well...how do you strike up a conversation with a guy who spends most of his time naked? How about praising him for it?  
_

"I applaud you," Yang continued, surprised at herself that she didn't laugh yet, "Man, I wish I was naked! I mean...this looks so great! That is how the Brothers intended it!" 

Port nodded along and Yang gave herself a mental high-five. She could almost feel those apartment keys in her hand. 

* * *

Setting: Ruby and Weiss' apartment

Time: A few minutes later...

You could cut the tension in the room. Blake and Weiss were discussing battle plans on the couch in the living room while Ruby and Jaune were in the kitchen doing the same thing. Ruby snickered as she stared at the backs of Blake and Weiss' heads.

"Look at them, they're panicked!" Ruby whispered to Jaune.

"Yeah, they're totally gonna back down," Jaune whispered back.

"Oh yeah!" 

Blake and Weiss, however, were far from panicking. In fact, Blake was getting herself ready to talk to Jaune. "All right, all right," she whispered to Weiss, "If he wants a date, he's gonna get a date. All right, I'm gonna go in." 

"Right," Weiss said, ready to see her friends admit defeat, "Okay, okay...be sexy."

Blake scoffed. "Please!" 

Blake stood from the couch and instantly put on her best seductive gaze as she walked over to Jaune and Ruby. Seeing her coming, Jaune shooed Ruby away and waited for Blake to come to him. 

"So Jauney," Blake said, laying it on thick with her seduction voice, "I'd love to come by tonight."

And just like that, Jaune's smile dropped into a frown. _She wasn't supposed to say that. Ruby...she wasn't supposed to say that!_

"Really?" Jaune replied back, almost a bit too squeaky from shock.

"Oh absolutely, should we say around 7?"

"...yes."

"Good. I'm really looking forward to you and me having _sexual intercourse_."

The entire mood of the room changed completely as Blake walked away from Jaune. Jaune looked like he was starting to panic, Ruby whispered for him to calm down, Weiss was trying not to laugh, and Blake had to turn away from everyone as she cringed from her word use. 

Before anyone could make a comment on what just happened, Neptune (who had been sitting by the window) stood up and said, "Hey, hey, check it out, check it out! Ugly Naked Guy's got a _naked friend_!" 

Jaune, Ruby, Weiss, and Blake all ran over to the window to see who it was...and all of them immediately started frowning as soon as they found out. It wasn't hard to tell; the blonde hair gave it away. 

"Oh my god, that's our friend!" Weiss screamed, "THAT'S NAKED YANG!" 

* * *

Time: 7:00 P.M.

"Showtime!" 

Weiss clapped as she had just finished dressing Blake up for her "date" with Jaune Arc. Neptune watched the two girls from the kitchen, still upset that his friends were going this far in this silly game. 

"Hey Weiss, get me perfume," Blake said as she did some final touch-ups to her makeup, "And Neptune, can you get me a bottle of wine and some glasses?"

Neptune sighed as he began looking through the kitchen for Blake's items.

Meanwhile, in Jaune and Neptune's apartment, Ruby was doing the final touch-ups for Jaune's clothing. She made sure there were no wrinkles in his vest and even shot some breath spray into his mouth. 

"It'll be great," Ruby said, completely focused on making Jaune look as good as possible, "You just make her think you want to have sex with her, it'll totally freak her out."

"Okay," Jaune nodded, "So, how far am I gonna have to go with her?" 

"Relax, she's gonna give in way before you do!"

"How do you know?"

"Because you're on my team! And my team always wins!"

Jaune could only glare at Ruby. "At this?!" 

Ruby rolled her eyes, not wanting to hear it. "Just go get some! Go!" After giving him a good luck kiss, Ruby ran off to hide in the bathroom while Jaune stood up to await Blake's arrival. 

Outside the front door, Weiss handed the wine bottle and glasses that Neptune found to Blake. "Okay, honey," Weiss said, "I'm gonna try to listen from right here. Okay?"

"Gotcha, Weiss," Blake said.

"Oh, wait!" Weiss stopped Blake for a second and moved to undo one button from her dress. 

"Good idea!" 

Weiss then made a move to pop another button, which made Blake push her away.

"Hey, don't give away the farm!" she said. Weiss nodded and and moved to the side to hide. 

Blake knocked on the door and Jaune opened. Both were putting on their best fake smiles, although Jaune's was a little bit more fake.

"Blake," Jaune said, trying to make his voice sound deeper than it was.

"Jaune," Blake said, trying to sound seductive. 

"Come on in."

"...I was going to."

Blake walked inside while Jaune closed the door. Weiss then moved in front of the door to try to hear what was going on. Ruby did the same, but through the bathroom door. 

Inside, Blake immediately went into the attack plan that she and Weiss decided on. _First, go for the wine. It'll calm you down and a tipsy Jaune might make more mistakes._

"I brought some wine, would you like some?" Blake asked.

"Sure," Jaune said. As Blake put the bottle and glasses down, Jaune nervously made his way to the other side of the counter that Blake was using. He tried to maintain his composure but it was so obvious that he was panicking on the inside. 

Blake pulled the cork off the wine bottle and they both gave out a fake laugh, hoping it would ease the tension. It did not.

"So," Blake said as she poured wine for both herself and Jaune, "Here we are. Nervous?"

"Me? No, you?" 

"No, I want this to happen." Blake looked away for a second, cringing at herself. She hoped that Jaune didn't catch her breaking character.

Jaune picked up his glass, apparently not noticing. "So do I." 

Blake and Jaune clinked their glasses and began to drink their wine. And they kept on drinking...on and on...until they finished their glasses in one go. Although they were used to Ruby, Yang, and Weiss complaining about Qrow Branwen's drinking habits, at that moment, they felt a sort of kinship with the huntsman. As if the wine was the only thing keeping them sane. 

After finishing his glass, Jaune decided to go into the attack plan he and Ruby decided on. _Play some music and ask Blake to dance. That'll make her feel super awkward, forcing her to drop the act and admit defeat!_

"I'm gonna put on some music," Jaune said as he made his way to the stereo. Just as he was about to turn it on, his heart sank when he heard Blake behind him.

"Maybe I'll dance for you," she said as she started to move along with the beat. _No! You were supposed to feel awkward!_

Unbeknownst to Jaune, Blake was feeling awkward. However, she had to commit to the routine. This was the way she was going to win!

"You look good," Jaune said with fake confidence. At that, Blake started to panic. _He's not backing down!? Even after all that?!_

"Thanks," Blake said, regaining her composure, "You know that...you say things like that...it makes me want to rip that...sweater vest, right off." 

"Well...why don't we move this into the bedroom?"

"Really?"

Blake stopped and her face dropped as soon as she heard Jaune's proposition. Jaune, on the other hand, felt that he was on the verge of victory. 

"Oh," Jaune said, trying his best to sound disappointed, "Do you not want to? I mean, I guess, if you're feeling too awkward-"

"-no, no. I just...you know, first I want to... _take off all my clothes and have you rub lotion on me._ "

Blake improvised all of that and couldn't help but feel that she was taking this too far. Meanwhile, Jaune looked like a deer caught in the headlights. He could only stare at Blake, wondering if she had gone insane or if she was really this desperate to win. 

"Well," Jaune stammered, "That's...um...that'll be nice. I'll...uh...go get the lotion." With that, he practically sprinted to the bathroom while Blake ran off to the front door. 

In the bathroom, Jaune dropped his guard and began to pace around while Ruby tried her best to calm him down. Nothing seemed to be working.

"Ruby, this is totally getting out of hand! She wants me to rub lotion on her!"

"She's bluffing!" Ruby said. 

"She's not backing down! She went like this!" Jaune then proceeded to thrust his hip, which was one of the dance moves that Blake was doing earlier. Ruby couldn't help but look impressed at how far Blake was willing to go.

Outside the front door, Weiss was trying to calm Blake down. Just like Jaune...she wasn't faring too well.

"He's not backing down, he went to get lotion!" 

Weiss furrowed her brows, trying to think of an emergency strategy that would finally end this stalemate. As she did, Neptune exited her apartment and walked over to them. He sighed, realizing the game wasn't over yet.

"Oh man, aren't you guys done yet?" Neptune whined, "I want to sit in my chair!" 

"Neptune, look," Weiss said, "Just look at it this way. The sooner Blake breaks Jaune, the sooner this is all over and out in the open."

At that, Neptune's eyes lit up. Despite having been miserable since this whole game started, the thought of the game finally ending excited him. Even though this was going against Jaune, he was willing to help Team WB if it meant he could go back to relaxing without a care in the world. 

"I like that," he said, "Um...oh, okay! Show him your bra! He's afraid of bras, can't work them!" 

Before Weiss could comment, Neptune licked his thumb and, in one flick, removed two buttons from Blake's dress, exposing her black, lacy bra. Blake stepped back in shock while Weiss could only stare in awe. It almost looked like he performed a magic trick. 

"Wow, you didn't rip off any buttons," Blake said, still surprised.

Neptune scoffed and folded his arms, proud of himself. "Not my first time."

Back in the bathroom, Ruby looked around the medicine cabinet and grabbed a bottle of lotion. She then shoved it into Jaune's hands.

"Look," she said, "You go back out there and you seduce her until she cracks!" 

"Okay, okay!" Jaune stammered, "Give me a second...hey, did you clean up in here?" For a moment, he stopped panicking when he realized that the bathroom was suddenly more organized and cleaner than how he and Neptune usually maintained it. 

Ruby just casually shrugged it off. "It was messy and I got bored."

Ruby opened the door and practically shoved Jaune out. As Jaune walked back to the living room, Blake re-entered, closing the front door as she did. She made sure that her back was turned to him, making sure he didn't see her bra just yet. 

"Oh, you're going?" Jaune asked. His face dropped when Blake turned around, her top open and her bra completely exposed. 

"Not without you, _lover,_ " Blake said. She walked towards Jaune, making sure he got a full view of her bra. "So...this is my bra."

 _What do I do, what do I do?!_ "It's...uh...it's very, very nice."

Blake smiled, thinking that this was it, that the game was over and Jaune was going to crack. 

"Well...come here. I'm very happy that we're going to have all the sex."

And just like that, Blake's smile turned into a frown. But she was too far into the game that she urged herself to push forward.

"Should be," Blake said as she took one step closer to Jaune, " _I'm very bendy._ " 

Jaune flinched just a bit.

"I'm gonna kiss you now," Blake continued.

"Not if I kiss you first!" 

With both Jaune and Blake uncomfortably close to each other, they both started making moves to each other's bodies. Although their movements were supposed to be "seductive", they looked more like they were taking karate classes, both of them seeing the other as an opponent they needed to take down.

Blake made the first move, putting her hand on Jaune's side. Jaune instinctively moved to grab Blake's hip but immediately backed down. With Jaune backing down, Blake closed the space by using her other hand to grab Jaune's butt. Now, there was barely any space between them. 

Jaune tried to reach for Blake's bra but, as Neptune predicted, he immediately stopped and hovered his hand over Blake's shoulder. Blake laughed at his attempt while Jaune felt like he was about to have a panic attack. 

"Well," Jaune said, "I guess there's nothing else left for us to do but...kiss." 

"Here it comes," Blake replied, the nervousness coming through, "Our first kiss." 

Both leaned in, with Jaune feeling like he was about to throw up on Blake while Blake stiffened, not wanting to kiss him. When their lips finally touched, both started to panic. It was only a matter of time before someone finally threw in the towel.

Fortunately for Blake, Jaune backed off first.

It was finally over. Jaune immediately pushed Blake back and shouted, "Okay, fine, fine, you win!" 

Blake sighed in relief. 

"I can't have sex with you!"

"And why not?!" Blake asked with glee, ready to finally hear Jaune admit his secret.

"BECAUSE I'M IN LOVE WITH RUBY ROSE!" 

"Wait...you're what?"

Blake's face dropped. _Oh...oh...okay, did not expect that._ Although she was still happy she won...she didn't think their relationship was that serious. 

Apparently, neither did Ruby. As she walked out of the bathroom, she looked just as surprised as Blake did. Even Weiss and Neptune, who heard the whole thing from outside, were stunned. With the game over, they entered the apartment as well. 

"LOVE HER! THAT'S RIGHT! I LOVE HER! I. LOVE. HER!"

By the time Jaune stopped rambling, he turned to Ruby and saw that she no longer looked shocked. Instead...she was smiling at him. Jaune felt a little embarrassed; he was so wrapped up in the game, he didn't notice that he basically confessed his love to her in the heat of the moment. He walked over to her and held her in his arms.

"I love you, Ruby Rose," he said, happy that he could finally say this to her.

"I love you too, Jaune Arc," she said back. They kissed, both of them not caring that Blake, Weiss, and Neptune were all watching. They forgot all about that game, this was their moment. 

"Guys, I thought you were just doing it, I didn't know you were in love," Blake said, breaking their bubble. 

"Dude!" Neptune exclaimed, also happy for the couple. 

Jaune and Ruby turned to the others. Although they lost, they weren't upset. If anything, they were happy that their friends were being supportive of them. 

Jaune turned to Blake. Although he still felt awkward being around her after everything that happened tonight, he couldn't help but congratulate her for the fight. She was one hell of an opponent.

"And hats off to Blake," Jaune said as he reached out to shake Blake's hand, "Quite a competitor. And may I say...your breasts are still showing."

Blake blushed in embarrassment and quickly turned around to button her dress up. 

As she did, Neptune sighed in relief. This was what he was waiting for, the moment that everybody found out. No more secrets, no more needing to cover for Jaune and Ruby whenever they messed up...it was all in the past.

"All right, so that's it!" Neptune said with glee, "It's over, everybody knows!" 

"Well...actually," Ruby sheepishly said, "Yang doesn't know."

"Yeah, and we'd appreciate it if no one told her yet," Jaune continued.

Neptune's face dropped as Weiss tried to comfort him. Although he was still happy for his friends...part of him was considering cutting them out of his life. 

* * *

Setting: ~~Ugly Naked Guy's / Peter Port's apartment~~ Yang Xiao Long's apartment

Time: A few minutes later...

"A new place for a new Yang!" 

Yang closed the door as her boss, Pyrrha Nikos, entered her new apartment. Port had already moved at this point, so the space was now completely empty. 

"I'm gonna have you and all the girls from work over once, you know, it's furnished." 

"I must say, it's nice to see you back on your feet," Pyrrha said happily.

"Well, I am that! And, uh, the whole rage thing is definitely behind me!"

"Hmm...I wonder if it's time for you to rejoin our team at the Academy." 

"Look, Pyrrha, that would be great! I am totally ready to come back to work. I-"

Yang's face dropped when she looked out her window...and saw what was going on in Ruby and Weiss' apartment. _Wait...is that? And are they..._

"What," Yang growled as she moved her way to the window, "No...what are you doing?! GET OFF MY SISTER!"

Yang's eyes turned red with rage as Pyrrha backed away, thinking that maybe Yang still hasn't gotten over her rage problem just yet. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Based on: "The One Where Everybody Finds Out" (Friends, season 5, episode 14)
> 
> Aye, shoutout to the Lancaster shippers out there, I dedicate this chapter to you.
> 
> Oh, btw, in case you're wondering what my reasoning was for the casting:
> 
> 1) Ruby and Yang had to be Monica and Ross in order to have the sibling relationship. Then between the two of them, I thought it'd be funnier if Ruby was Monica. Plus, Yang is the overprotective sibling, so she made more sense as Ross anyways.
> 
> 2) Sun Wukong was initially going to be Joey, but I switched him to Neptune. Why? First off, like Joey, Neptune is a womanizing fool. Second, it's because Rachel Green was interested in both Ross and Joey. Neptune actually was a love interest for Weiss in the show while Yang was casted for Ross because of the reason above. So basically...shoutout to the Freezerburn shippers. 
> 
> 3) Weiss is Rachel since it made sense to me that Ruby would share an apartment with her partner. Also, like Weiss, Rachel started out as a spoiled rich girl who later matures into a responsible person. 
> 
> 4) Blake is Phoebe because...well, I thought she'd be funny in that role. Plus, with that one scene where Phoebe shows off her butt to Chandler, I really wanted to do a Bellabooty joke.


	13. "The Grimm are Among Us" Highlights

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A series of highlights from the RWBY cast playing the newest hit game in Remnant, "The Grimm are Among Us"...

**Segment #1**

**(DEAD BODY HAS BEEN FOUND:** WEISS SCHNEE / **REPORTED BY:** YANG XIAO LONG)

_The voting lobby opens up and immediately, Yang and Nora start yelling at each other. Ruby, Blake, Jaune, Ren, Qrow, and Winter are caught off-guard since the round just started._

**Blake Belladonna:** Wow, we weren't even playing for a whole minute and Weiss is dead already-

**Yang Xiao Long:** -OH HELL NAH. BLAKE, I'M SORRY THAT I CUT YOU OFF BUT NORA, DON'T EVEN ACT LIKE I DIDN'T SEE YOU-

**Nora Valkyrie:** -BRUH, NO, DON'T EVEN TRY THIS XIAO LONG. I WAS IN ELECTRICAL WHEN I SAW WEISS' BODY-

**Yang Xiao Long:** -LIAR! SHE'S THE GRIMM!

**Ruby Rose:** Whoa, whoa, whoa, we just started! We need some more information first! Yang, what happened!?

**Yang Xiao Long:** I SAW NORA KILL WEISS. SHE WAS LITERALLY STANDING OVER HER BODY, LET'S GET HER OUT OF HERE-

**Nora Valkyrie:** -WAIT, NO! I WAS DOING MY TASKS! I SWEAR TO OUM THAT THERE WAS NO BODY IN THAT ROOM WHEN I WAS THERE! I'M BEING SERIOUS, WHEN I ENTERED THE ROOM, WEISS WASN'T THERE. THEN ALL OF A SUDDEN, HER DEAD BODY SHOWED UP! 

**Yang Xiao Long:** YEAH, BECAUSE YOU KILLED HER, YOU GRIMM!

**Nora Valkyrie:** YANG, YOU BETTER STOP WITH THAT BULLSHIT! THE WAY YOU'RE ACCUSING ME, I THINK YOU MIGHT BE THE GRIMM! 

**Yang Xiao Long:** AND NOW YOU'RE DEFLECTING! Guys, let's vote, let's get Nora out of here.

**Blake Belladonna:** (from her Zoom cam, the group can see her shaking her head, clearly disappointed in Yang and Nora for not letting anyone else speak)

**Jaune Arc and Lie Ren:** (from their Zoom cams, they both look confused at the whole situation. Deciding to let Yang and Nora air their grievances out to the whole group since the two of them aren't letting anyone else speak, they mute themselves in order to read off their Twitch donations)

**Weiss Schnee:** (from her Zoom cam, she's silently fuming at her stupid friends because she was the first to die and knows that Nora is not the Grimm)

**Qrow Branwen:** (from his Zoom cam, he looks stunned. That's because his bad luck somehow transferred to Nora since _he's the Grimm who killed Weis_ s)

**Winter Schnee:** (Winter turned her Zoom cam off and muted herself. This is to make sure no one can see her laughing her ass off _because she's the second Grimm._ Even though she's annoyed at being paired up with Qrow, she still found it hilarious that Weiss was the first one out)

* * *

** Segment #2 **

_ Nora Valkyrie is moving around the map. She is alone. As she finishes up her task, we see Lie Ren coming up from behind her. _

**Nora Valkyrie:** Okay...so I have to get to electrical and-oh hey, there's Renny! Hello! Let's stick together-

_ Ren violently stabs Nora to death, then reports his own kill.  _

**Nora Valkyrie:** (eye starts twitching from rage) ...that son of a...

**(DEAD BODY HAS BEEN FOUND:** NORA VALKYRIE / **REPORTED BY:** LIE REN)

_The voting lobby opens up. Only players left are Ren, Yang, Emerald, Mercury, and Sage. Nora, Ruby, Blake, Jaune, and Neopolitan are all dead._

**Lie Ren:** Whoa, whoa, whoa...Yang, you're just gonna act like I didn't see you run by Nora-

**Yang Xiao Long:** -NO. NO. YOU'RE NOT DOING THIS TO ME AGAIN. I WAS NOWHERE NEAR NORA. IT'S YOU BRUH, YOU SELF-REPORTED!

**Emerald Sustrai:** I don't know Yang, you've been kinda sus this whole game.

**Yang Xiao Long:** I SWEAR TO YOU, IT'S REN AND MERCURY!

**Mercury Black:** First off, I'm not one of the Grimm. Second, what you just said is EXACTLY what a Grimm would say!

**Sage Ayana:** (from his Zoom camera, we can see him smiling to himself. This is because he's the second Grimm and is enjoying the fact that no one is even suspecting him)

**Ruby Rose, Blake Belladonna, Jaune Arc, Neopolitan:** (all of them sigh in frustration, disappointed since they were killed and that no one is even suspecting Ren and Sage)

* * *

**Segment #3**

**(DEAD BODY HAS BEEN FOUND:** SCARLET DAVID / **REPORTED BY:** JAUNE ARC)

_The voting lobby opens up. Everyone except Scarlet is still alive. Living players are Jaune, Velvet, Mercury, Emerald, Yang, Penny, Neopolitan, and Octavia._

**Jaune Arc:** So I found the body in the hallway. You know, where you have to go through decontamination-

**Velvet Scarlatina:** (audible gasp that catches everyone off-guard) I saw Mercury Black there! He ran past me! 

_ The group starts going, "OOOOOOHHHHHH" while Mercury facepalms at this.  _

**Mercury Black:** Oh HELL NAW. Guys, I know this doesn't look good but I swear, I was doing the wires-

**Emerald Sustrai:** Wait...Mercury, you were doing the wires?

**Mercury Black:** YEAH! I was just about to finish-

**Yang Xiao Long:** -HELL NO, YOU'RE LYING! WE CAUGHT YOU! 

**Mercury Black:** Okay, how the hell am I caught? Blondie, you're not making sense right now-

**Yang Xiao Long:** -MERCURY, I'M LITERALLY AT THE DAMN WIRES RIGHT NOW! SO IF YOU'RE DOING THE WIRES, WHERE ARE YOU? Last time I checked, your semblance isn't INVISIBLITY!

**Mercury Black:** Man...that's some bullshit! Y'all are seeing this, Yang is clearly trying to pin it on me! It's Yang!

**Penny Polendina:** Friend Mercury, that's...how would you say this...really "sus" now.

**Neopolitan:** (in sign language) Let's vote him out!

**Mercury Black:** Wait, no, no, no, no, no, no-

(everyone votes Mercury out, text appears on-screen - "MERCURY WAS THE GRIMM. 1 GRIMM REMAINS)

**Emerald Sustrai:** Yup, we caught his dumb ass, good catch Yang.

**Velvet Scarlatina:** Woohoo! Good work crewmates! 

**Jaune Arc:** Alright, everyone, get back to your tasks!

**Penny Polendina:** Friends, before we mute...did anyone notice that friend Octavia didn't say a single word during the meeting? 

**Octavia Ember:** (starts sweating profusely since she's the second Grimm)

* * *

**Segment #4 **

**(DEAD BODY HAS BEEN FOUND:** SCARLET DAVID / **REPORTED BY:** WEISS SCHNEE)

_ The voting lobby opens up. Only Ruby, Weiss, and Blake are left. Dead players are Neptune, Yang, Scarlet, Sun, Jaune, Nora, and Ren. Immediately, when the lobby comes up, Ruby starts screaming into the mic.  _

**Ruby Rose:** WEISSITWASBLAKE, WEISSITWASBLAKE, WEISSITWASBLAKE, WEISSITWASBLAKE-

**Blake Belladonna:** -Whoa, whoa, whoa, Ruby are you gonna let me talk-

**Ruby Rose:** WEISS, BLAKE VENTED AND KILLED SCARLET. I SAW THE WHOLE THING-

**Blake Belladonna:** Weiss, just for once, you gotta trust me. If you believe Ruby's nonsense, you're gonna throw the whole game for us!

**Weiss Schnee:** Will you dolts slow down, I can't think straight-

**Ruby Rose:** -I'M TELLING YOU IT WAS BLAKE!

**Blake Belladonna:** NO, IT'S NOT ME. IT WAS OBVIOUSLY RUBY!

**Ruby Rose:** Weiss, please, I'm your partner, you gotta trust me-

**Blake Belladonna:** -whoa, whoa, whoa, you can't be pulling the partner card! Weiss, there's only one reason why she's doing that! She's desperate because she knows she's about to lose-

**Ruby Rose:** -LIES! Weiss, please believe me!

_ Several seconds later..."Blake has been ejected" _

_ Suddenly, the screen changes to the "DEFEAT" sign. The Grimm for this round were Ruby Rose and Neptune Vasilias. All the players unmute their mics. _

**Neptune Vasilias:** GG! GG! LET'S GO RUBY! HASHTAG TEAM RED SEA! WOOOOOOO! I CAN'T BELIEVE WE PULLED THIS OFF! 

**Ruby Rose:** (no words...just a bunch of incoherent screams of joy, followed up by loud clapping noises)

**Blake Belladonna:** Wow...wow...wow...wow...WOW WEISS. WOW! Just...WOW!

**Yang Xiao Long:** Weiss, I'm calling you Eiss from now on. Because Ruby stole that W from us!

**Scarlet David:** (from his Zoom cam, he facepalms himself. We then hear sounds of disappointed groaning through his mic)

**Sun Wukong:** Nep...bro, I've never felt this betrayed in a long while. Why you gotta self-report my body, man? Also, WHY WAS I THE FIRST TO DIE?

**Nora Valkyrie:** I FRICKIN KNEW IT WAS RUBY FROM THE START!

**Jaune Arc:** Damn it...I say that Ruby was sus ONE TIME! And then all of RWBY declares me as the Grimm and votes me out! Look what happened! LOOK AT WHAT HAPPENED!

**Lie Ren:** Honestly, I can't even be that mad. I'm just happy we at least got Neptune.

**Weiss Schnee:** (steps away from her laptop and starts pacing her room, fuming with anger)

* * *

**Segment #5**

**(DEAD BODY HAS BEEN FOUND:** SUMMER ROSE / **REPORTED BY:** QROW BRANWEN)

_The voting lobby opens up. The living players are Qrow, Adam, Winter, Taiyang, Raven, Neopolitan and Ironwood. Dead players are Summer, Cinder, and Roman._

**Qrow Branwen:** Okay, I found Summer's body in O2. Now I know that y'all don't trust me because of my semblance, I know that I'm the bad luck guy...but hear me out. This is going to sound crazy...but I think it's Taurus and Ice Queen-

**Adam Taurus:** -WHAT!? HOW DARE YOU ASSUME I'D EVER BE WORKING WITH A SCHNEE! 

**Winter Schnee:** Everyone, don't listen to the drunkard, he has no idea what he's talking about. As if I'd ever work with one of the White Fang. 

**Adam Taurus:** SHUT IT, SCHNEE! DON'T YOU EVER MENTION THE WHITE FANG EVER AGAIN! 

**Winter Schnee:** ...Taurus, I swear to Oum, why are you even playing with us? Who invited you!?

**Raven Branwen:** Hey, Taurus, Schnee, leave the politics out of the game and let's focus on the damn Grimm. You two are hijacking the chat...again!

**Neopolitan:** (in sign language) You two are bumming all of us out. 

_ Unbeknownst to everyone, Qrow was actually 100% correct. Adam and Winter are the Grimm for this round, much to their dismay.  _

**Taiyang Xiao Long:** Okay...going back to Qrow, I just want to say, I think that accusation was kind of stupid, especially when we know who the REAL Grimm is!

**Qrow Branwen:** Wait...we know who it is?

**Taiyang Xiao Long:** Yeah, it's obviously Ironwood-

**James Ironwood:** -NOW HOLD ON JUST ONE MINUTE HERE! WHY IS MY NAME SUDDENLY BEING MENTIONED HERE?!

**Qrow Branwen:** Tai, I know what I said was weird but I'm pretty sure it's not Jimmy. I'm telling you, it's Faunus-Killmonger and Ice Queen-

**Winter Schnee:** -The drunkard lies! He's lying! (starts sweating, still not sure how the bird man figured her out)

**Summer Rose:** (cheering loudly in her room, hoping that the group listens to Qrow)

**Cinder Fall and Roman Torchwick:** (although both of them are muted on Zoom, they both look amazed that Qrow somehow figured out who their killers are)

_ / _

_ / _

_ Several seconds later... _

_ / _

_ / _

**Qrow Branwen:** (votes Adam Taurus)

**James Ironwood:** (votes Taiyang Xiao Long out of spite)

**Taiyang Xiao Long, Raven Branwen, Neopolitan, Winter Schnee, Adam Taurus:** (votes James Ironwood)

(JAMES IRONWOOD WAS NOT THE GRIMM. 2 GRIMM REMAIN)

**Qrow Branwen:** Damn my bad luck! (mutes his mic)

* * *

**Segment #6**

**(DEAD BODY HAS BEEN FOUND:** LIE REN / **REPORTED BY:** NORA VALKYRIE)

_The voting lobby opens up. Ruby, Blake, Nora, Yang, Sun, and Jaune are alive. Ren, Weiss, Neptune, and Scarlet are dead._

**Nora Valkyrie:** Alright, it's a wrap. Guys, let's win this game right now. It's Blake, I saw her on camera.

**Jaune Arc:** Good enough for me, let's get her out-

**Ruby Rose:** -HOLD ON, YOU CAN'T JUST VOTE FOR A MEMBER OF MY TEAM LIKE THAT, WE NEED TO DISCUSS!

**Jaune Arc:** Ruby, we're not in a battle right now, you don't have to stick up for Blake like this. 

**Nora Valkyrie:** ALSO, THERE'S NOTHING TO DISCUSS, I SAW HER-

**Ruby Rose:** (goes into a long, epic, passionate speech about how Blake is innocent and that she can't possibly be the Grimm)

**Yang Xiao Long:** (goes into a speech defending Blake that's just as passionate but is even angrier than Ruby's)

**Jaune Arc:**...Ruby and Yang can't be serious right now...

**Nora Valkyrie:** ...oh my Oum, I can't believe we're about to lose like this.

**Sun Wukong:** (staying silent, amazed at how dedicated Ruby and Yang were in protecting Blake)

**Blake Belladonna:** (also staying silent, both amazed and thankful that she didn't have to defend herself)

_ Several seconds later. Ruby, Blake, Yang, and Sun vote to skip, Nora and Jaune vote for Blake. No one is ejected and everyone returns to the main game. _

_ After finishing a task, Yang sees Blake, Sun, and Ruby coming to join her.  _

**Yang Xiao Long:** Okay...there goes the wires, now I gotta do navigation. I still can't believe those bozos tried to vote for Blakey-oh hey, Blake! And you have Sun and Ruby with you! Let's stick together-

_ All of a sudden, Blake stabs Yang to death. Before Ruby can report, Sun stabs Ruby to death. All of this happens within the span of a second.  _

_ The game cuts to the "DEFEAT" SCREEN. It turns out, Sun Wukong and Blake Belladonna were the Grimm. Everyone unmutes their mics. _

**Sun Wukong:** SPAM THOSE W'S IN MY CHAT, LET'S GO! (Sun's chat stream is suddenly filled with responses of either 'W', '#TeamFaunus', or 'TeamBlackSun')

**Blake Belladonna:** (smirks and sips her tea triumphantly while ignoring the angry texts she's getting from Ruby and Yang)

**Nora Valkyrie:** NO ONE LISTENS TO ME, I SWEAR! Thank you fearless leader for at least having my back.

**Jaune Arc:** Nora...I'm getting tired of losing at this game.

**Nora Valkyrie:** Same, maybe we should play with other people. Preferably not Team RWBY. 

**Jaune Arc:** (nods his head, then proceeds to text Team CFVY to see if they wanted to play) 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Based on: Among Us 
> 
> So, a bunch of these are from my Tumblr. I thought I'd compile them all together here, as well as some new material. Anyways, yeah, another breather chapter. I wanted to do something easy and light after the Friends chapter.


	14. Mercury Don't Tip

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cinder, Roman, Mercury, Emerald, Neopolitan, Junior, Tyrian, and Pyrrha all enjoy breakfast as they discuss hot topics in Vale today, ranging from hidden metaphors in popular music to minimum wage...

Setting: The Quill and Ink Diner

Time: Morning 

"Let me tell you what 'Like A Virgin' is about."

The other criminals around the table just rolled their eyes as Tyrian Callows began his story. Knowing the man, they were pretty sure that whatever story he had in mind, it was either going to be extremely disturbing...or mildly disturbing. 

"Don't wave this off just yet," Tyrian continued, much to the others' protests, "'Like A Virgin' is all about a girl who digs a guy with a big dick. The entire song...it's all a metaphor for big dicks."

Cinder just shook her head as she lit a cigarette. "No, it ain't," she snapped at the scorpion faunus, "It's about a girl who's very vulnerable. She's been fucked over a few times and she meets a guy who's sensitive-"

"-Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. Timeout there, Miss Eyepatch. Tell that bullshit to the tourists."

From the way Tyrian waved her to stop, Cinder felt the urge to just... _kill_ the man right there. However, she held back, knowing that they needed him for the job.

_Maybe I'll kill him after we're done._

As Tyrian was telling his story, Roman Torchwick, who wasn't paying attention to the antics of his crew, was going through a tiny black book. Emerald Sustrai, who was sitting right next to him, was growing more and more tired of the man as he scrolled through the pages, looking for someone whose name was just at the tip of his tongue. 

"Ciel?" Roman asked to himself as he flipped over to the next page in his book, "Who the fuck is Ciel?"

Emerald groaned and, just like Cinder, was wondering if she could kill this man sometime in the future. 

Tyrian continued, saying, "'Like A Virgin' is not about some sensitive girl who meets a nice fellow. That's what 'True Blue' is about. Now, granted, no argument about that-"

"-Which one is "True Blue?" Pyrrha Nikos interrupted. She looked around the table and, much to her dismay, saw that everyone was frowning at her. _Did I ask something wrong here, what's going on?_

Neo knocked on her side of the table, catching Pyrrha's attention. When she turned, she saw that Neo had written something on her scroll. Holding it up, Neo had written, "Cereal Mascot, you've never heard of 'True Blue'? It was a big-ass hit for Casey Lee Williams. I don't even follow that top-of-the-pops shit, and I've heard of 'True Blue'". 

Pyrrha sighed in annoyance. "Look, ice cream addict, I didn't say I ain't heard of it. All I asked is, how's it go? Excuse me for not being the world's biggest Casey Lee Williams fan!"

Cinder Fall huffed, annoyed at this entire conversation. "Personally, I can do without her," she said, lighting another cigarette after finishing her previous one.

As Cinder puffed out some smoke, Junior Xiong, feeling awkward after hearing Cinder's diss towards the famous pop singer, decided to throw in his two cents. "Well...I used to like her early stuff," Junior said, making Cinder roll her eyes, "You know...'Borderline'...but I'll admit, once she got off with that 'Papa, Don't Preach' phase, I tuned out. Happy, Ms. Blonde?"

"Shut your mouth and let me smoke in peace."

Tyrian groaned in annoyance, causing everyone to look at him. They had all gotten so caught up in the Casey Lee Williams discourse that they forgot why they were talking about her in the first place.

"Hey, you guys are making me lose my train of thought here," Tyrian whined, "I was saying something. What was it?"

No one responded, choosing to ignore Tyrian in the hopes he wouldn't tell whatever messed up story he had in mind. 

As Tyrian was lost in thought, Emerald turned to Roman and saw that he was still going through that damn little black book. She was just a few seconds away from just snatching it from him.

"Oh, Ciel's that little Atlesian girl," Roman murmured to himself, "Hmm...what was her last name-"

"Roman, what the hell are you reading?" Emerald finally snapped at him. Roman turned to her, trying not to show that he was annoyed at her tone with him. 

"If you really want to know, it's an old address book I found in a coat I haven't worn in a long time. Now...what was that name?! Ciel...Turner? Ciel...Solinda? Ciel-"

"-What the fuck was I talking about?!" Tyrian groaned. Now the group wasn't sure what they were more annoyed at, the fact that Tyrian was trying to tell a disturbing story or that Tyrian was complaining that he couldn't remember his disturbing story. 

In a rare moment of sympathy, Mercury Black looked up from his omelette and decided to help him. "You said 'True Blue' was about a guy...er, wait, no, a sensitive girl who meets a nice guy...but something about how 'Like A Virgin' was a metaphor for big dicks." 

Cinder Fall (and pretty much, the rest of the table) all made mental notes to hurt Mercury later for helping Tyrian Callows remember his story. 

Tyrian, smiling at Mercury, went back to his story. "All right, let me tell you what 'Like A Virgin' is about," he said with a wicked grin on his face, "It's all about this cooze who's a regular fuck machine. I'm talking morning, day, night, afternoon...dick, dick, dick, dick, dick, dick, dick, dick, dick!"

Cinder resisted the urge to facepalm. _I knew it, I knew this story was going to be utter garbage._

Even Mercury Black, who didn't really care about what was going on with his co-workers, was cringing from the tale. 

Junior, after hearing all that, could only ask, "How many dicks is that?"

"A lot," Emerald Sustrai said, hating the fact that she had to clarify it to the man.

"Then one day, she meets this Jaune Arc motherfucker," Tyrian continued, causing Cinder to groan even more, "Suddenly, it's like, 'Whoa, baby'. I mean, this man is like Yatsuhashi Daichi in _The Battle of Beacon_. Ever see that movie? Think of it this way, he's digging tunnels. Now she's getting serious dick action. And because of that, she's feelin' something she ain't felt since forever; pain. Pain!"

Tyrian laughed at his own story while Roman muttered to himself, "Ciel Sommiel? Ciel Surreal?"

"It hurts," Tyrian continued, "It hurts her. But it shouldn't hurt her! Her pussy should be Bubble-Yum by now. But when this Jaune Arc-Yatsuhashi Daichi fellow fucks her...it hurts. It hurts just like it did the first time. You see...the pain is reminding a fuck machine...what it was once like to be a virgin. Hence...'Like A Virgin'." 

Tyrian sat back in his seat, feeling proud of the story he had just told. As he looked around the table to see if anyone else recognized the 'genius' in his story, he saw that nobody else was impressed.

Cinder Fall was just shaking her head in annoyance.

Emerald Sustrai had stopped paying attention a while ago since she was too focused on not trying to kill Roman Torchwick. 

Pyrrha Nikos tuned out upon hearing the words 'Her pussy should be Bubble-Yum' (although she was interested in learning more about this 'Jaune Arc' person that Tyrian was referring to). 

Neopolitan...wasn't even listening, she was eating her ice cream the whole time.

Junior Xiong looked disgusted. 

Mercury Black just looked at Tyrian, wondering if hiring the crazy man for their high-risk jewel heist operation was a good idea. 

As the group tried to go back to their food, Roman looked up from his book as if he just had an epiphany. "Soleil!"

And just as quickly as he discovered Ciel's last name, Emerald snatched the book away from him, having had enough. "Give me that fucking thing!" she growled as Roman looked at her, pissed off. Neopolitan stopped eating, glaring at Emerald as she tucked the book away into her pocket. 

"Now what in the hell do you think you're doing, Mint Head!?" Roman yelled at her.

"I'm sick of hearing it, Roman," Emerald snapped back, looking at him right in the eyes, "I'll give it back to you when we leave."

"What do you mean 'when we leave'," Roman whined at her, "Give me it back now!"

Emerald turned to Neo, who ran a finger across her neck as a warning. Unfazed, Emerald rolled her eyes at both Neo and Roman before turning back to Roman. 

"Roman," Emerald said, trying her best to stay calm, "Since you've been locked into your book this whole time, let me fill you in on all the annoying shit that you've missed out on. For the past fifteen minutes now, you've been droning on about names. 'Uh, let me see...Ciel? Ciel? Ciel? Ciel Moliel? Ciel Soleil? Ciel Soleil? Ciel So-Greel? Fucking Charlie Chan!' Now I've got Casey Lee Williams' big dick coming out of my left ear...and Ciel the Atlesian-- I don't know what--coming out of my right! Do you understand just how annoying all that shit together is?!"

Emerald, who was still looking at Roman, was hoping that he would finally realize how annoying he was being. But instead, even after Emerald's rant, he raised his hand to her. "Give me that book," he said once again. Emerald just sighed, frustrated at her boss' behavior. 

"Are you gonna put it away?" Emerald asked. 

At this point, Roman's mild annoyance had grown. It seemed like he was genuinely getting pissed at her. "I'm gonna do whatever the fuck I want with it," Roman snapped back. 

In response, Emerald just smirked and turned away. She patted her pocket where she had the book. "Well, then I'm afraid...I'm gonna have to keep it." 

_Knock, knock_

Emerald and Roman turned to across the table. Cinder Fall was leaning forward, a wicked grin on her face. With her eyes on Emerald, she said, "Hey, Roman...you want me to shoot this girl?"

The table was silent for a couple of seconds. It was broken when everyone (with the except of Pyrrha) started laughing. Pyrrha just watched, not sure how to respond. 

_Ha, shoot me!? As if, Cinder. Good one!_ "You shoot me in a dream," Emerald said to Cinder, "You better wake up and apologize."

The criminals all laughed once more. Even Pyrrha, who didn't think anything funny was said, chuckled along, just so she could match the group's energy.   
  
A few minutes later, the group was winding down from breakfast. Most of the group had finished their food and at this point, they were just waiting for Roman to call an end. As they waited for Roman, Neo tapped something onto her scroll and showed it to the group. Everyone leaned in to read what she wrote. 

Neo's scroll: "You guys been listening to T-STRQ's 'Super Sounds of the Seventies' weekend?"

The group, even Pyrrha, all nodded their heads. They weren't hardcore fans of Vale's hit radio DJs Summer Rose, Taiyang Xiao Long, Raven Branwen, and Qrow Branwen (although they all did like Raven more than the other members), but they had to admit that the 70s throwback that they were doing was an amazing idea. 

"Oh yeah," Mercury nodded, "That's fucking great."

Neo put her scroll down and did the rest of her "speaking" through sign language. The criminals watched closely, wanting to know what she was thinking of. "You believe the songs they've been playing?"

"Know what I heard the other day? 'Caffeine' by 'Little Man' Lamar Hall and the C.L. Williams Family. I haven't heard that song since I was in the fifth fucking grade."

"When I was coming down here," Neo signed to the group, "'The Night the Lights Went Out in Wind Path' by Cocolicious Adel came on. I ain't heard that song since it was big. But when it was big, I must've heard it a million-trillion fucking times. But this is the first time I ever realized...that Cocolicious Adel, you know, the woman singing the song, is the one who shot Cardin."

Neo stopped and frowned when she saw everyone start to snicker at her. _What? Was it not obvious?_

Even Roman, the man she looked up to, couldn't help but snicker at what she admitted to the group. 

"You didn't know that Cocolicious Adel was the one who shot Cardin?" Tyrian Callows asked, sounding surprisingly calm and rational.

Neo pouted, annoyed that everyone was thinking she was dense. "I thought it was the cheating wife shot Cardin," Neo signed at everyone. 

"But they say Adel did it at the end of the song," Cinder dully pointed out. 

Neo growled. "I know, motherfucker," she signed vigorously towards Cinder's direction, "I just heard it. That's what I'm talkin' about. I must've zoned out during that part before!"

The group all laughed at Neo, surprised that a hot-shot criminal like her seemed to have missed a crucial part of a song that she claimed to have listened to multiple times. Neo, realizing she was fighting a losing battle, sat back in her chair, still a bit pissed. Roman patted her on the back, hoping that would calm her down. It did not. 

When the laughter died down, Roman stood up, catching everyone's attention. "All right," he said, "I'll take care of the check. You guys can get the tip. Should be about a lien apiece. And you-" Roman pointed at Emerald right as he said that. "-when I come back, I want my book."

"Sorry, it's my book now," Emerald said with a smirk. Roman sighed, turning to Cinder as he did. 

"Hey, I changed my mind. Shoot this piece of shit, will you?"

The gang laughed once more as Roman walked away from the table. Just to humor him, Cinder Fall extended her finger out and pretended to kill Emerald. Emerald, playing along, pretended to get shot.

"All right, everybody cough up some liens for the little lady," Neo signed at everyone. She went into her bag, pulled out a lien, and dropped it down in the center of the table. Pyrrha was next, followed by Cinder, Emerald, Junior, then Tyrian. 

Mercury Black was the only one who didn't contribute to the pool. Noticing this, Neo turned to the man. "Come on, throw in a lien," Neo signed at him. 

Mercury, without a hint of irony in his tone, simply said, "Uh, uh, I don't tip."

This stopped the whole group. Neo was looking at him as if he had gone crazy, Cinder, Junior, and Tyrian just looked at him dully, and Pyrrha and Emerald were concerned about how he just brushed off paying the tip so casually.

"You don't tip?" Neo signed at him, still unsure what to think of him. 

Mercury shrugged. "I don't believe in it."

"You don't believe in tipping?"

At that, Junior Xiong stepped in. Being the former owner/manager of a club in Vale, he knew exactly what the importance of tipping was in the service industry. 

And if he ever forgot, there was always Melanie and Miltia Malachite there to put him in his place. 

"Do you know what these chicks make?" Junior snapped at Mercury, "They make shit."

"Is that why Melanie and Miltia quit working for you?" Mercury joked at Junior, making the former club owner frown in response, "If she doesn't make enough money, she can quit."

Even though he was being a douche...Cinder Fall couldn't help but chuckle a little at what he said. 

Neo scoffed. "I don't even know a fucking Mistralian who'd have the balls to say that," she signed at him, "Let me get this straight...you don't ever tip, huh?"

"I don't tip because society says I have to," Mercury answered back, "All right, I mean, I'll tip if the person really deserves a tip. If they really put forth the effort, I'll give them something extra. But this tipping automatically, it's for the birds. As far as I'm concerned, they're just doing their job."

Neopolitan laughed. She still didn't like what Mercury was saying but she had to admit, he was making a pretty entertaining argument. 

"Hey, come on now," Junior said, "This girl was nice."

"She was okay. She wasn't anything special."

"What's special? Take you in the back and suck your dick?"

The whole table burst out into laughter at what Junior had to say. Mercury, who wasn't expecting that, had to lean back as he thought it over. _Well...that is an interesting form of...special treatment._

And he wasn't the only one to think it over. Neo, after wondering about what she would do if she were in Mercury's position, wrote in her scroll, "Well, if she's into girls...then I'd be willing to go over 12% for that."

"Okay look," Mercury continued, "I ordered coffee, all right? Now we've been here a long fucking time and since then, she's only filled my cup three times. I mean, when I order coffee, I'd want it filled six times."

"Six times?" Cinder scoffed, thinking that Mercury was just being an idiot at this point, "Well, what if she's too fuckin' busy?"

"The words 'too fuckin' busy' shouldn't be in a waitress' vocabulary."

"Excuse me, Mr. Pink," Neopolitan signed to Mercury, "but the last fucking thing you need is another cup of coffee."

"Oh Brothers, just hear me out on this. These ladies aren't starving to death. They make minimum wage. I used to work minimum wage, and when I did...I wasn't lucky enough to have a job that society deemed tip-worthy."

"You don't care they're counting on your tips to live?" Junior snapped at him. 

In response, Mercury began rubbing his middle finger and thumb together. Junior stared at him, confused at what he was trying to imply. 

"You know what this is?" Mercury said with an evil-looking smirk, "This is the world's smallest violin and it's playing just for the waitresses."

That was the last straw for Emerald. Although Mercury was her partner, she couldn't stand his blatant disrespect for the minimum wage workers, especially after he admitted that he knew what it was like. She knew he was arrogant...but this was crossing some sort of line. 

"You don't have any idea what you're talkin' about," Emerald scolded him, "These people bust their ass. This is a hard job."

Mercury just shrugged his partner's comments off, further pissing off Emerald. "Yeah, okay Miss White, so's working at WcDonald's, but you don't feel the need to tip them, do you? Think about it, they're serving you food, but society says...'don't tip these guys over here, but tip these guys over here'. That's bullshit and you know it."

"Mr. Pink, waitressing is the number-one occupation for female, non-college graduates in this country. It's the one job basically any woman can get and make a living on. The reason is because of their tips."

Cinder, Pyrrha, Neo couldn't help but smile at the green-haired woman for her defending women in the workplace. Junior nodded his head, reminded of what the Malachite twins used to tell him. Even Tyrian, of all people, looked impressed.

Mercury, however...Emerald's words just went over him like water through a strainer. 

"Fuck all that," he simply said. 

Tyrian couldn't help but howl with laughter. It was pleasing to him, how much pessimism and contempt for the waitresses that Mercury was displaying. Meanwhile, Cinder, Pyrrha, Neo, and Junior frowned at him, believing that this attitude was too cold even for a guy like Mercury. 

For what it's worth, even Mercury started to think he was being an asshole. He turned to Emerald, who looked even more disappointed in him than before. 

"All right, I'll concede this," he said, "I'm very sorry the Valean government taxes their tips. That's fucked up, but that ain't my fault. I mean, it would appear that waitresses are one of the many groups the government fucks in the ass on a regular basis. Now if you show me a piece of paper that says the government shouldn't do that, I'll sign it. Hell, if you put it to a vote, I'll even vote for it. But what I won't do is play ball. Also, Miss White, this non-college bullshit that you're preaching...I got two words for that: Learn to fucking type. Because if you're expecting me to help out with the rent, you're in for a big fucking surprise."

Mercury flinched when Emerald chucked some mashed potatoes at his face. Although he was annoyed, he felt like he had that coming. _Typical...still won't change my mind though._

As Mercury wiped the potatoes off his face, the group saw Pyrrha lean over and reach for her lien. "Okay, he's convinced me," she said, "Give me my lien back."

Neo acted fast. She swatted Pyrrha's hand away from the pile, than plopped her chest on the pile to cover it. "Hey," she signed at Pyrrha, "Leave the liens in there. Don't make a move for it again, Cereal Girl."

"Sorry, sorry," Pyrrha sheepishly said, trying to avoid Neo's gaze.

As Neo sat back in her seat, Roman Torchwick returned with the bill. 

"All right, ramblers," he said, taking in all the liens that the group had tossed in, "Let's get rambling." After doing a quick scan of the money, he immediately noticed they were a lien short. Emerald rolled her eyes when he began looking around the table, trying to figure out who it was. 

"Wait a minute...who didn't throw in?"

"Mr. Pink," Pyrrha pointed out. Mercury frowned at her for ratting him out. 

"Mr. Pink?" Roman asked, unhappy at the man's miserliness, "Why not?"

"He don't tip."

"'He don't tip?' You don't tip?

"He don't believe in it-"

"-Shut up," Roman snapped at Pyrrha. Immediately, Pyrrha looked away, wanting to hide away from his gaze. Turning back to Mercury, Roman said, "What do you mean, you don't believe in it? Cough up a lien, you cheap bastard. I paid for your goddamn breakfast."

Mercury sighed. Sure, he could argue with Torchwick all day long but he wasn't in the mood and he did bring up a good point about him paying for everyone. That, he could respect. 

"All right, since you paid for the breakfast, I'll put in," Mercury said as he threw a lien onto the table, "But normally I would never do this."

"Never mind what you normally would do," Roman growled as he snatched the lien, "Just cough up your goddamn money like everybody else." As he recounted the liens, Emerald took out the book and handed it back to Roman. Roman, still a little peeved from earlier, snatched the book out of Emerald's hands. "Thank you."

_You're welcome, you bowler hat wearing bastard._

At that, the eight criminals stood up and headed out of the restaurant. They had a long day ahead of them. 

* * *

_Qrow Branwen (on the radio): That was The FNKI Family's "Doesn't Somebody Want To Be Wanted?"...followed by The Four Maidens' "Love Grows Where My Rosemary Goes"...as T-STRQ's_ _"Super Sounds of the Seventies" weekend...just keeps on truckin'._

* * *

**A FILM BY**

**WORDWARRIOR**

**(The eight criminals begin walking down the parking lot. This is all in slow-motion)**

** STARRING **

**(♫ Lookin' back on the track for a little green bag ♫)**

**EMERALD SUSTRAI** **(counterpart: Mr. White)**

**(♫ Got to find just a kind or losin' my mind ♫)**

**CINDER FALL (counterpart: Mr. Blonde)**

**(♫ Out of sight in the night, out of sight in the day♫)**

**NEOPOLITAN (counterpart: Nice Guy Eddie)**

**(♫ Lookin' back on the track gonna do it my way♫)**

**MERCURY BLACK (counterpart: Mr. Pink)**

**(♫ Out of sight in the night, out of sight in the day♫)**

**ROMAN TORCHWICK (counterpart: Joe Cabot)**

**(♫ Lookin' back on the track gonna do it my way♫)**

**JUNIOR XIONG (counterpart: Mr. Blue)**

**(♫ Lookin' back♫)**

**TYRIAN CALLOWS (counterpart: Mr. Brown)**

**and**

**(♫♫)**

**PYRRHA NIKOS (counterpart: Mr. Orange)**

**are...**

**RESERVOIR DOGS**

**(♫ Lookin' for some happiness** **♫)** **  
(♫ But there is so a loneliness to find** **♫)** **  
(♫ Turn to the left, turn to the right** **♫)** **  
(♫ Lookin' upstairs, lookin' behind** **♫)**

**CO-STARRING**

**ROBYN HILL (counterpart: Officer Holdaway)**

**PENNY POLENDINA (counterpart: Officer Marvin Nash)**

**TEAM RWBY (counterpart: the bathroom sheriffs)**

**QROW BRANWEN (counterpart: Steven Wright)**

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Based on: Reservoir Dogs
> 
> I know I said that this wouldn't become a QT fic...but I can't help it, he's one of my favorite directors. Also, another reason why I wanted to write this is because I wanted to give Team CRMEN a leading role for once. The good guys have been the lead for the past few chapters, so it's fair that the bad guys get their chance to shine.


	15. RWNRPPO play Cards Against Remnant (Part 1)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ruby, Weiss, Nora, Ren, Pyrrha, Penny, and Oscar play a...questionable game.

**BASIC RULES**

1) To start the game, each player draws ten white cards.

2) The player who most recently pooped begins as the Card Czar and draws a black card. If Jugh Hackman is playing, he goes first, regardless of how recently he pooped.

3) The Card Czar reads the question or fill-in-the-blank phrase on the black card out loud. Everyone else answers the question or fills in the blank by passing one white card, face down, to the Card Czar.

4) The Card Czar then shuffles all the answers and reads each card combination out loud to the group. The Card Czar should re-read the black card before presenting each answer.

4) Finally, the Card Czar picks the funniest play, and whoever submitted it gets one point.

5) After the round, a new player becomes the Card Czar and everyone draws back up to ten white cards.

Rule specific to this round of Cards Against Remnant: First player to get to 5 points wins

* * *

Setting: The RWBY dorm room 

Time: Night

Table set-up (four-sided table):

  1. Ruby Rose and Oscar Pine are sitting side-by-side 
  2. Weiss Schnee and Penny Polendina are sitting side-by-side 
  3. Lie Ren and Pyrrha Nikos are sitting side-by-side 
  4. Nora Valkyrie is sitting by herself, but on purpose since she's leading game night 



ROUND 1: PYRRHA

"Alright, everyone ready?"

Everyone around the room shook their heads, prompting Nora to start dealing out the cards. Most of the players were familiar with the game; Pyrrha, Nora and Ren had played with Jaune during game nights, Weiss played at least one game with Winter and Whitley, and Penny had played with her own team back in Atlas. The only players who were unfamiliar with the game were Ruby and Oscar Pine. 

Unfortunately for them...they were about to get a crash course in how awful this game could get. But, per Weiss, they only had themselves to blame since they were warned ahead of time. 

After everyone got their cards, Nora said, "Okay, so let's begin. Who pooped recently?" 

No one answered. Then, very awkwardly...Pyrrha Nikos raised her hand. Nora had to stop herself from laughing, not wanting to embarrass Pyrrha any further.

"Seriously," Nora said, "When?"

"...when I left my dorm," Pyrrha sheepishly said, "Which was, like, ten minutes ago."

"Oh, there it is. Okay, so, Pyrrha draws first."

Pyrrha leaned forward and grabbed a black card on the table. Upon reading it, she made a sound that sounded like she was choking. _Oh no...this could be bad._

"'What turns Jaune Arc on'," Pyrrha said. Immediately, everyone started murmuring to themselves. Nora was laughing as she slammed her card down on the table while Ruby reluctantly placed her own. 

After everyone turned in a card, Pyrrha collected them all and shuffled them to make sure this was fair. 

**CARD: What turns Jaune Arc on**

  1. A big ole', Grimm penis 
    1. Pyrrha: Oh my Oum. First card and it's already terrible.
    2. Ruby: ...do Grimm have-
    3. Weiss: -AH, let's not think about that! 
  2. Winter Schnee's suckable, icy feet 
    1. Pyrrha: Monty Oum, I can't believe I said that out loud.
    2. Weiss: WHO MADE THAT CARD?!
    3. Ruby: Why does it feel like Uncle Qrow made that card?
    4. Penny: Friend Ruby...is it normal for people to be attracted to feet-
    5. Oscar: -Um...let's just...move on. 
  3. His sister 
    1. Pyrrha: NOOOOOOOOOOOOO.
    2. Nora: Don't ever tell Saphron about this. 
    3. Ren: Let's not tell anyone about our answers in this game, period. 
  4. The huntsman/huntress low life expectancy 
    1. Pyrrha: Whoa, too real. 
    2. Oscar: That one is just...sad. 
  5. The Faunus Rights Revolution 
    1. Pyrrha: Huh? 
    2. Penny: Well friends, this game is supposed to be offensive. So...perhaps the person who submitted that card had that mindset? 
    3. Ruby: But...that card doesn't make sense!? 
  6. Salem's giant gahonga bazongalongadongas 
    1. Pyrrha: Okay, I gotta admit, this one's pretty funny.
    2. Oscar: Ew. 
    3. Ruby: Is that you saying 'ew', or Oz-
    4. Oscar: -Ruby, please don't. Let's not over think this. 



After going through all six cards, Pyrrha chooses 'Salem's giant gahonga bazongalongadongas", that being the only card she actually laughed at.

Smiling, Ruby reached over and grabbed the card.

"Beginner's luck!" Weiss shouted as Ruby laughed at her. 

**SCORE**

  1. **Ruby: 1**
  2. **Weiss: 0**
  3. **Nora: 0**
  4. **Ren: 0**
  5. **Pyrrha: 0**
  6. **Penny: 0**
  7. **Oscar: 0**



**WHO SUBMITTED WHAT**

  1. **A big ole', Grimm penis**
    1. **Lie Ren, he thought it'd be funny**
  2. **Winter Schnee's suckable, icy feet**
    1. **Oscar Pine, he just thought it'd be funny, he also wasn't expecting Weiss' reaction**
  3. **His sister**
    1. **Nora Valkyrie, she knew it would cause a strong reaction from Pyrrha**
  4. **The huntsman/huntress low life expectancy**
    1. **Penny Polendina, she was trying to be offensive based on how the game was explained to her**
  5. **The Faunus Rights Revolution**
    1. **Weiss Schnee, she gave up and just threw in a card**
  6. **Salem's giant gahonga bazongalongadongas**
    1. **Ruby Rose, she thought it sounded the funniest**



* * *

ROUND 2: LIE REN

Pyrrha chooses a direction and up next is Lie Ren. Ren, feeling that the game was already off to a horrible start, reluctantly reached over and grabbed a black card.

"Oh boy," he muttered as soon as he read the prompt, "'_________, Remnant's all-new favorite sporting event'. Alright, hit me with your best shot."

Like the last round, everyone took their time in selecting a card. Pyrrha seemed upset with her answer while Weiss muttered to herself, "Why are all my cards awful!?" 

After everyone finished, Ren looked at the group and said, "Just so everyone knows, I usually go for logical answers. You gotta answer the prompt, okay."

"Party pooper," Nora joked. 

**CARD: _________, Remnant's all-new favorite sporting event**

  1. Shoving pancakes up your ass 
    1. Ren: This seems more like a Nora answer-
    2. Nora: -BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
    3. Ren: See, told y'all. Whoever tossed this in might have wasted their card. 
  2. Food fighting 
    1. Ren: Hmm...this certainly brings back memories. 
    2. Ruby: That's definitely a Yang answer. 
  3. Exploiting the Faunus lower classes 
    1. Ren: Another racist Faunus card? The hell? 
    2. Oscar: Maybe it's a good idea that Blake is at her book club right now. 
    3. Penny: But if the goal of the game is to be offensive-
    4. Weiss: -Penny, please don't start. 
  4. Snorting dust 
    1. Ren: Huh...that sounds...unhealthy.
    2. Ruby: Wouldn't that hurt?
    3. Pyrrha: Uh...possibly? 
  5. Having a semblance that lets you suck your own dick 
    1. Ren: Okay...that's just gross. 
    2. Pyrrha: That...doesn't make sense. 
    3. Oscar: How would that even work? 
    4. Weiss: And why on Remnant would anyone want to do that? 
    5. Penny: Well, according to my database-
    6. Weiss: -Penny! Don't!
  6. Blaming Qrow for everything 
    1. Ren: That's...rude.
    2. Ruby: REALLY RUDE! 



Ren briefly looked through all six cards one more time. It didn't take him long to figure out what won him over. 

He dropped five of the cards into the discard pile...then held up, "Food fighting" as the winner.

Extremely surprised, Weiss reached over and grabbed the card.

"I honestly thought you wouldn't pick this," she said.

"It's the one that made the most sense with the prompt-"

"-PARTY. POOPER. RENNY." Nora whined. 

**SCORE**

  1. **Ruby: 1**
  2. **Weiss: 1**
  3. **Nora: 0**
  4. **Ren: 0**
  5. **Pyrrha: 0**
  6. **Penny: 0**
  7. **Oscar: 0**



**WHO SUBMITTED WHAT**

  1. **Shoving pancakes up your ass**
    1. **Nora Valkyrie, she thought Ren would pick her card because he would connect her and pancake references**
  2. **Food fighting**
    1. **Weiss Schnee, her cards currently suck so she just went with the one that fit the prompt the most**
  3. **Exploiting the Faunus lower classes**
    1. **Pyrrha Nikos, hence why she felt really upset using this card**
  4. **Snorting dust**
    1. **Oscar Pine, he thought the mental image of dust snorting as a competition would be funny enough to win Ren over**
  5. **Having a semblance that lets you suck your own dick**
    1. **Ruby Rose, she thought it was funny because of the word 'dick' but didn't fully understand what the card was saying**
  6. **Blaming Qrow for everything**
    1. **Penny Polendina, she thought it was a perfect balance of funny and offensive**



* * *

ROUND 3: PENNY

"Oh, it's my turn," Penny exclaimed, "Sensational!" 

"Wait, real quick," Ren said as he slid a black card to Penny, "How do you judge the submissions? Just so that we know what to give you."

Penny put her thumb underneath her chin. It didn't cross her mind until Ren pointed it out how she would judge the winners. 

"Hmm," Penny mused, "Since this game is supposed to be both offensive and hilarious...perhaps I'll go for the submission that is the most balanced of those two extremes."

Ren nodded his head at that. "Fair enough."

"Okay...so...my card says...'The name of Ozpin's autobiography'...ooh, how interesting!" 

Everyone tossed in their submissions. Unlike the last two rounds, no one really gave away anything about their cards. 

**CARD: The name of Ozpin's autobiography**

  1. Monty Oum 
    1. Penny: Ooh...interesting suggestion. But is this offensive? 
    2. Ruby: I'm not even sure if that was funny-
    3. Oscar: -hey, hey, hey, no influencing the Card Czar.
    4. Nora: Sounds like you're getting defensive there, Pine. That your suggestion?
    5. Oscar: Just...no! I mean...Penny, move on, please. 
  2. Third-degree coffee burns 
    1. Penny: Wow! A really good balance of hilarious and offensive! 
    2. Pyrrha: Ouch...I don't even want to think about what that would look like in real life.
    3. Weiss: Eh, tea is better anyways.
  3. Ex-wife problems 
    1. Penny: Oh, another good one! 
    2. Ren: Wow, a casual Salem joke? Okay then. 
  4. Oscar Pine 
    1. Penny: Um...well, this is...awkward.
    2. Oscar: I hate that card. 
    3. Nora: Should've saved that for a prompt about Ruby-
    4. Ruby: -SHUT IT. 
  5. Ninjas of Love 
    1. Penny: Oh, isn't that the book that friend Blake reads all the time?
    2. Ruby: Yeah.
    3. Weiss: Just based on her usual reading material...I'd highly doubt that Ozpin would want his autobiography to be done in that style. 
  6. Perpetual disappointment 
    1. Penny: So blunt!
    2. Pyrrha: Considering his connection with Salem and how it's still ongoing until now, I'd say it works.
    3. Nora: Pyr, you're not just saying that because that's your card, right?
    4. Pyrrha: No! 



It didn't take long for Penny to decide. Holding the card up to the whole group, the other players saw that 'Third-degree coffee burns' won. 

Oscar sighs happily and grabs the card from Penny.

"Man, that should be cheating," Nora whined, "He's technically Ozpin so he would know him better than the rest of us!"

"For the record," Penny said, "'Ex-wife problems' was close. Who tossed that in-"

Before Penny could ask, Pyrrha sighed loudly, giving herself away. 

**SCORE**

  1. **Ruby: 1**
  2. **Weiss: 1**
  3. **Nora: 0**
  4. **Ren: 0**
  5. **Pyrrha: 0**
  6. **Penny: 0**
  7. **Oscar: 1**



**WHO SUBMITTED WHAT**

  1. **Monty Oum**
    1. **Nora Valkyrie, she didn't really have a good card for this round**
  2. **Third-degree coffee burns**
    1. **Oscar Pine, he knew instantly that that would be the best card to toss in**
  3. **Ex-wife problems**
    1. **Pyrrha Nikos, she was confident this would win, just based on Ozma and Salem's relationship**
  4. **Oscar Pine**
    1. **Weiss Schnee, she was trying to be clever**
  5. **Ninjas of Love**
    1. **Lie Ren, just like Nora, he didn't have a good card for this round and this was the sole card that was book-related**
  6. **Perpetual disappointment**
    1. **Ruby Rose, no real reason, she just thought it'd be funny and offensive**



* * *

ROUND 4: WEISS

Weiss didn't waste any time and grabbed a black card from the deck. As soon as she read the prompt, she turned away, disgusted.

"Oh no," Ruby whimpered, "Weiss-cream, what's it say?"

Weiss sighed. "It says 'Weiss used to hate __________, but now loves it after trying __________'. This is going to be a disaster."

Everyone around the table chuckled while Ruby gave her partner a comforting pat on the back. 

"Just so you dolts know," Weiss continued, "Try to keep it funny. Don't just be offensive for the sake of it."

"Yeah, yeah, we got you," Nora yammered, "Gotta keep it classy for the ice princess-"

"-SHUT IT!" 

**CARD: Weiss used to hate __________, but now loves it after trying __________**

  1. Ruby's silver eyes / Cunnilingus  

    1. Weiss: WHOA. WHOA. I SAID DON'T JUST BE OFFENSIVE FOR THE SAKE OF IT. 
    2. Ruby: Uh...what's cunni-
    3. Pyrrha: -It's not important! 
    4. Ruby: But what is it? I just wanna know-
    5. Nora: -Ruby, all you need to know is that it's fun if you have the right partner-
    6. Weiss: -VALKYRIE, DON'T GIVE RUBY THE WRONG IDEA. 
    7. Ruby: It's fun?
    8. Weiss: JUST STOP! 
  2. Her father / Her mother 
    1. Weiss: Oh...wow. Just...wow.
    2. Ren: I feel like we were pretty brutal this round.
    3. Penny: Wow, what are the chances that someone had both those cards in their hand? 
  3. Jerking off / Myrtenaster 
    1. Weiss: Seriously!? What is wrong with you all?!
    2. Oscar: How would that even work?
    3. Nora: Well-
    4. Oscar: -I wasn't being serious. 
  4. Weiss Schnee / Character development 
    1. Weiss: Oooohhhh, I like this one. 
    2. Ruby: Of course you'd like that one, it's praising you.
    3. Weiss: You...you...shut it, you dolt! 
  5. The Grimm / Drinking the tears from the faunus lower classes who just want equality 
    1. Weiss: That's just horrible! What is up with these racist faunus cards?! 
    2. Oscar: Is anyone else a little uncomfortable with Weiss getting that card? I mean, considering her family's relationship with the faunus-
    3. Penny: Uh, friend Oscar, let's not try to bring real-world politics into this.
    4. Pyrrha: Agreed. 
  6. Men / Neptune Vasilias 
    1. Weiss: (bursts out laughing)
    2. Ruby: Darn it...I think we just found out who won.
    3. Nora: I'll give them this, that was a pretty good combination. 



Weiss quickly discards most of the cards, leaving only 'Weiss Schnee/Character development' and 'Men/Neptune Vasilias'. After weighing her options...she selects 'Men/Neptune Vasilias'.

"Okay, so my reasoning here is," Weiss said, "Although I'm flattered that someone was thinking of me...the Neptune one made me laugh. Who was it-"

"-woo!" The group groaned as Ruby Rose grabbed the card. She was now in the lead. 

"I still haven't won a round yet!" Nora whined. Ren, feeling bad for her, patted her on the back.

**SCORE**

  1. **Ruby: 2**
  2. **Weiss: 1**
  3. **Nora: 0**
  4. **Ren: 0**
  5. **Pyrrha: 0**
  6. **Penny: 0**
  7. **Oscar: 1**



**WHO SUBMITTED WHAT**

  1. **Ruby's silver eyes / Cunnilingus**
    1. **Pyrrha Nikos, she wasn't really trying this round and wanted to get rid of her 'Ruby's silver eyes' card since she wasn't sure how that would be useful in future rounds**
  2. **Her father / Her mother**
    1. **Lie Ren, he was trying to be logical by reasoning that Weiss hated her father and respected her mother to an extent**
  3. **Jerking off / Myrtenaster**
    1. **Oscar Pine, he wasn't really trying this round so he tossed the cards he didn't care for**
  4. **Weiss Schnee / Character development**
    1. **Nora Valkyrie, she was pretty sure she had this round by playing to Weiss' ego**
  5. **The Grimm / Drinking the tears from the faunus lower classes who just want equality**
    1. **Penny Polendina, she was trying to be both funny and offensive, thus she thought the faunus card would work due to the Schnee's controversial connection to the faunus**
  6. **Men / Neptune Vasilias**
    1. **Ruby Rose, knowing her partner's previous relationship with Neptune, she knew that she had a winning combo**



* * *

ROUND 5: OSCAR

"Guess it's my turn," Oscar noted as he reached over and grabbed a card. As he did, Nora furiously grabbed a pancake beside her and tore into it. She was still peeved that she still had zero points. 

Oscar read the card. After all the faunus-themed cards that came up in the previous round, he wasn't surprised that he now came across a faunus-themed black card. "Check this out...'The White Fang's next brilliant plan to secure faunus rights'. Please don't be too racist with this." 

"I feel like no matter what we toss in, we're all gonna come off terrible," Pyrrha pouted.

"Well, once again, perhaps it's good thing that Blake didn't join us for this game," Ren noted. 

**CARD: The White Fang's next brilliant plan to secure faunus rights**

  1. A delicious breakfast burrito 
    1. Oscar: Well, there's someone throwaway card. 
    2. Weiss: Seriously though. 
    3. Nora: Man, now I'm craving a burrito. 
  2. Read some of Blake's futanari fanfiction 
    1. Oscar: (bursts out laughing) 
    2. Weiss: Could you imagine the White Fang actually doing that? 
    3. Pyrrha: They'd all be dead from nosebleeds. 
  3. To the window, to the wall, til the sweat drop down my balls, to all these bitches crawl 
    1. Oscar: Huh...lyrics to a Lil Malachite and the Mil-Mel Twins song. Don't know how that relates to the prompt though.
    2. Ren: So...another throwaway.
    3. Oscar: Y'all weren't even trying this round. 
    4. Penny: I think, friend Oscar, it's because we were trying our best to not sound racist. 
    5. Ruby: Sounds about right. 
  4. "Kill all the humans" - Adam Taurus' first words 
    1. Oscar: Perfect. That's perfect. I mean, I'll read the others but this one won.
  5. Steal Qrow's alcohol 
    1. Oscar: Huh? I mean...funny? I guess? But it has nothing to do with the prompt!
    2. Ruby: Plus, isn't he sober now? 
    3. Penny: I don't know, friend Ruby. But good for him if he is! 
  6. Cut off Yang's other arm  

    1. Oscar: Ohhh...and there's second place.
    2. Ruby: WHY WOULD YOU DO THAT TO MY SISTER?!
    3. Weiss: That one is so rude. Whoever came up with that is a monster.



As Oscar promised, he tossed most of the cards into the discard pile and held up the Adam Taurus card. Nora shrieked when she saw Ren lean over and grab the card from Oscar.

"Sorry Nora," he said to his partner, "I'm playing to win as well-"

"-Stupid Renny!" 

**SCORE**

  1. **Ruby: 2**
  2. **Weiss: 1**
  3. **Nora: 0**
  4. **Ren: 1**
  5. **Pyrrha: 0**
  6. **Penny: 0**
  7. **Oscar: 1**



**WHO SUBMITTED WHAT**

  1. **A delicious breakfast burrito**
    1. **Ruby Rose, she was trying her best not to sound racist so she tossed in the most non-threatening card in her hand**
  2. **Read some of Blake's futanari fanfiction**
    1. **Nora Valkyrie, she wanted to use a card that at least related to the faunus. The Blake card was the closest one she had.**
  3. **To the window, to the wall, til the sweat drop down my balls, to all these bitches crawl**
    1. **Weiss Schnee, she was trying her best not to sound racist so she tossed in the card that she had no use for. She doesn't listen to Lil Malachite and the Mil-Mel Twins.**
  4. **"Kill all the humans" - Adam Taurus' first words**  

    1. **Lie Ren, he knew this was the most logical answer among his cards.**
  5. **Steal Qrow's alcohol**
    1. **Pyrrha Nikos, she was trying her best not to sound racist so she tossed in a card that had nothing to do with the faunus.**
  6. **Cut off Yang's other arm**
    1. **Penny Polendina, she remembered that Adam had cut off Yang's arm, so she thought it'd fit the prompt**



* * *

ROUND 6: RUBY

"My turn!" Ruby yelled as she quickly grabbed a black card. As she did, she accidentally bumped the table, causing the deck to topple over. 

"Hey, hey, watch my deck!" Nora pouted as she quickly reshuffled the fallen over cards. Ruby, embarrassed, rubbed the back of her head as she sat back down in her seat. Weiss just shook her head, unsurprised by her partner's behavior but still disappointed.

"Okay, okay, sorry about that," Ruby apologized, "Anyways...mine's says...'What will finally make Bumbleby canon'...hmm, what's Bumbleby?"

"I believe that's Blake and Yang's ship name," Nora said.

"Oh, this should be fun! Alright...show me your worst!"

"Worst as in offensive or worst as in, just make you laugh?" Ren asked.

"Make me laugh!" 

"I'd do that but I don't have any cards about cookies, guns, and Weiss," Pyrrha joked. Ruby stuck her tongue out at her jokingly. 

**CARD: What will finally make Bumbleby canon**

  1. A tragic death that will motivate the protagonist 
    1. Ruby: Oh...oh no...let's not do that!
    2. Weiss: I can already hear Blake saying something like, "A good way to motivate the two characters to get involved is if they shared some kind of trauma-"
    3. Ruby: -but seriously, let's no do that! 
  2. Big dick energy 
    1. Ruby: Huh...that's what Yang's always saying. 
    2. Oscar: Wait, Yang has a dick-
    3. Ruby: -no, what are you, crazy?!
    4. Pyrrha: I think Yang just means she has a lot of power and confidence. She has the energy of a...of a...don't make me say it.
    5. Nora: Would it make more sense to say 'alpha energy'?
    6. Ren: Nora, that study has been disproved.
    7. Penny: I concur with friend Ren. 
  3. An entire encyclopedia consisting of Yang's awful puns 
    1. Ruby: This prompt was how to get them together. This would make Blake hate Yang! 
    2. Weiss: Agreed. 
    3. Oscar: Well, some of her puns are good-
    4. Ren: -no they're not. 
  4. 24-hour Lisa Lavender media coverage 
    1. Ruby: Huh...I mean...I guess?
    2. Pyrrha: Celebrity life really isn't all that great. 
  5. Seppuku 
    1. Ruby: That's a little...dark.
    2. Ren: Yikes. Sounds like someone doesn't want Blake and Yang to be together. 
    3. Oscar: Um...what's seppuku?
    4. Penny: It's when a huntsman or a huntress commits ritual suicide in order to maintain their honor. This was a practice during the Great War and was done by huntsmen and huntresses who wanted to avoid capture-
    5. Nora: Okay, okay, we get it. 
  6. Being awesome at sex 
    1. Ruby: Well...I guess that's...logical?
    2. Ren: But wouldn't the fact that they had sex imply that they are already in a relationship? The prompt was about how to get them together-
    3. Nora: -PARTY. POOPER. RENNY. 
    4. Penny: But friend Ren made a valid argument! 



Ruby stared at her cards, wondering which to choose. First, she tossed the cards she didn't care for (Lisa Lavender, seppuku, tragic death). Between the last three cards, she put a hand underneath her chin and started to weigh her options.

"Well...Blake might not be fond of a whole book of just Yang's puns," she said out loud, "But it's still a book. Being awesome at sex...sounds like a Yang answer. And then there's big dick energy, which fits Yang to a tee! Man...I don't know!"

"Ruby, just pick one," Weiss groaned.

After a few more seconds deliberating, Ruby reluctantly tossed two cards into the discard pile. She then forwarded the "big dick energy" card forward as the winner.

"YES, FINALLY!" Nora snatched the card from Ruby, finally happy she was on the scoreboard.

Meanwhile, Penny and Pyrrha groaned, hating the fact they were still at zero. 

**SCORE**

  1. **Ruby: 2**
  2. **Weiss: 1**
  3. **Nora: 1**
  4. **Ren: 1**
  5. **Pyrrha: 0**
  6. **Penny: 0**
  7. **Oscar: 1**



**WHO SUBMITTED WHAT**

  1. **A tragic death that will motivate the protagonist**
    1. **Lie Ren, he was thinking logically and figured that shared trauma could bring them together**
  2. **Big dick energy**
    1. **Nora Valkyrie, she was thinking about which of her cards was the most Yang-like**
  3. **An entire encyclopedia consisting of Yang's awful puns**
    1. **Pyrrha Nikos, she thought it made sense since the prompt was about Yang**
  4. **24-hour Lisa Lavender media coverage**
    1. **Penny Polendina, she didn't have any strong cards for this round so she went with this one, thinking that the media could pressure Blake and Yang into dating**
  5. **Seppuku**
    1. **Oscar Pine, he didn't know what seppuku meant, so he tossed it in the pile to get rid of it**
  6. **Being awesome at sex**
    1. **Weiss Schnee, she figured that being great at sex would lead to a long, happy relationship**



* * *

ROUND 7: NORA

Nora, still happy from finally winning a round, reached over and grabbed a black card. Before she read it, she looked at the group and said, "Alright, this is where I make my comeback!"

"Calm down, Nora," Ren dully said, "It's just one point." Nora stuck her tongue out at Ren.

"Okay everyone...I'm giving you all permission to go nuts with this. 'After months of debate, Ironwood decided that the best way to fight the Grimm is __________'. Make it as offensive as possible!"

"Please no," Weiss groaned as she started looking over her cards. 

"A little too late to complain about the game's nature, Weiss-cream," Ruby said as she tossed in her card.

**CARD: After months of debate, Ironwood decided that the best way to fight the Grimm is __________**

  1. Glynda Goodwitch's secret BDSM dungeon 
    1. Nora: (bursts out laughing) 
    2. Weiss: Uh...that's an...uh...interesting thing, she would have.
    3. Pyrrha: Great, now I have that image stuck in my head.
    4. Oscar: What does "BDSM" mean? 
    5. Weiss: Uh...nothing you need to worry about! Nora, let's move on!
  2. Firing a rifle in the air while stealing Neopolitan's ice cream 
    1. Nora: Hmm...interesting. I mean, when you think about it, you'd probably piss Neo off to the point that she'll kill everything around her. So-
    2. Ren: -Nora, it's not that serious.
    3. Nora: I'm just saying, I can see the logic!
    4. Ren: What logic? 
  3. Neopolitan is number one waifu 
    1. Nora: Oh, hello throwaway card. 
    2. Weiss: Hmph...what does she have that I don't?
    3. Penny: Bigger breasts?
    4. Weiss: PENNY!
    5. Penny: What? It's an objective observation! 
  4. Being a complete douche 
    1. Nora: (bursts out laughing)
    2. Penny: That's a bit rude to the general 
    3. Oscar: That...oddly fits.
    4. Ruby: Yeah...
  5. The Tragedy of Mountain Glenn 
    1. Nora: Um...throwaway card?
    2. Pyrrha: And now, the game is dark again. 
    3. Ren: Perhaps they mean that Ironwood would invoke the tragedy of Mountain Glenn in order to inspire people to enlist in the military?
    4. Nora: Renny, is this your card?
    5. Ren: I'm just trying to be logical. 
  6. Using just the tip 
    1. Nora: (bursts out laughing) 
    2. Weiss: Oh yeah, THAT will definitely stop the Grimm.
    3. Ruby: Just the tip...of your weapon? 
    4. Nora: (bursts out laughing again) Yeah...Ironwood's big sword! 
    5. Ruby: Huh? 
    6. Oscar: Wait...oh, that's what that means! 



After going through all the cards, Nora quickly tossed three of them in the discard pile. The only ones she had left were "using just the tip", "Glynda Goodwitch's BDSM dungeon", and "being a complete douche". 

It didn't take her long to decide which she liked better. She held up "Glynda Goodwitch's BDSM dungeon" as the winner, that card being the one that made her laugh the hardest. 

Shamefully...Ruby Rose reached over and grabbed the card.

"RUBY?" Weiss yelped, "SERIOUSLY?"

"I thought it made sense, like, Ironwood would toss the Grimm in a dungeon," Ruby sheepishly said, "But apparently, BDSM means something else?"

"Yeah, what does it mean?" Oscar asked.

At that, Ren leaned over and whispered the meaning of BDSM to Ruby while Pyrrha did the same to Oscar. Both Ruby and Oscar's faces turned bright red as soon as they discovered the meaning.

**SCORE**

  1. **Ruby: 3**
  2. **Weiss: 1**
  3. **Nora: 1**
  4. **Ren: 1**
  5. **Pyrrha: 0**
  6. **Penny: 0**
  7. **Oscar: 1**



**WHO SUBMITTED WHAT**

  1. **Glynda Goodwitch's secret BDSM dungeon**
    1. **Ruby Rose, she thought that Ironwood would just toss the Grimm into the dungeon, she had no idea what BDSM meant**
  2. **Firing a rifle in the air while stealing Neopolitan's ice cream**
    1. **Penny Polendina, she didn't have a strong card for this round, so she went with this card since it mentioned gunfire**
  3. **Neopolitan is number one waifu**
    1. **Oscar Pine, this was a throwaway round for him**
  4. **Being a complete douche**
    1. **Lie Ren, he thought that in order to fight back against the Grimm, he would have to take on a more aggressive approach, which could mean coming off as a douche to other people**
  5. **The Tragedy of Mountain Glenn**
    1. **Weiss Schnee, this was a throwaway round for her**
  6. **Using just the tip**
    1. **Pyrrha Nikos, because Nora said she wanted offensive cards, Pyrrha tossed in a card that sounded terrible regardless of the prompt**



* * *

ROUND 8: PYRRHA II

"Well, here goes another round of me not earning a point," Pyrrha whined as she grabbed a black card. Nora patted her on the back, feeling sorry for her teammate.

"Hey, it's alright, we still got a long way to go," Nora chirped.

"At this point, I'd be happy to earn just one point."

"I agree, friend Pyrrha," Penny said, also unhappy that she still had zero points. 

"Okay, okay, here we go. 'The biggest problem facing Remnant today'. Surprise me."

"You sure you want us to do that?" Nora said with a big grin. Pyrrha shook her head. This game was meant to be offensive but she still wanted somewhat-logical answers. 

**CARD: The biggest problem facing Remnant today**

  1. Mercury and Emerald's unresolved sexual tension 
    1. Pyrrha: Oh, that's...interesting. 
    2. Ruby: I can kinda see it.
    3. Weiss: Yeah, me too. 
    4. Nora: Are we forgetting that they're bad guys?
    5. Ruby: ...well, it's still cute to me.
  2. Mistralian immigrants 
    1. Pyrrha: HEY, I'M FROM MISTRAL! 
    2. Ren: That's a big yikes.
    3. Penny: Perhaps they're referring to the criminal organizations from Mistral, specifically from Wind Path and Kuchinashi-
    4. Pyrrha: -NOT HELPING! 
  3. Jaune and Pyrrha's unresolved sexual tension 
    1. Pyrrha: (turns bright red, unable to comment on the card) 
    2. Oscar: Well...guess we found the winner.
    3. Weiss: I can't even be mad, that was perfect. 
  4. The radicalization of faunus youth 
    1. Pyrrha: ...and we're back to the faunus politics.
    2. Ruby: Seriously, there's been a lot of those cards in this session.
    3. Oscar: But it does fit this prompt, if you think about it. This could be referring to the White Fang. 
  5. Vilifying the White Fang while making the Schnees, their oppressors, the heroes 
    1. Pyrrha: WHOA! Was this planned out? 
    2. Oscar: That was a little too perfect to be a coincidence. 
    3. Weiss: Hey...I know my family's company has done a lot of shady stuff but...we're not all terrible. 
    4. Ren: And now I'm really glad that Blake's not here. She'd have so much more to say. 
  6. Too. Much. Dust. 
    1. Pyrrha: Well, I can see how that'd be a problem.
    2. Ruby: Eh, that's kind of a boring response.
    3. Weiss: Wow, way to tear that answer down, Ruby.
    4. Ruby: What? It's true! 



Everyone already knew what Pyrrha was going to pick. To the surprise of no one in the room, she held up the "Jaune and Pyrrha's unresolved sexual tension" card. 

Ren, with a big smirk on his face, grabbed it from Pyrrha.

"That's two," Ren said to Ruby, "Catching up to you, red."

"Bring it on, ninja boy!" Ruby said back. 

**SCORE**

  1. **Ruby: 3**
  2. **Weiss: 1**
  3. **Nora: 1**
  4. **Ren: 2**
  5. **Pyrrha: 0**
  6. **Penny: 0**
  7. **Oscar: 1**



**WHO SUBMITTED WHAT**

  1. **Mercury and Emerald's unresolved sexual tension**
    1. **Penny Polendina, she thought it'd be funny to reference the two criminals and it sounded enough of a "problem"**
  2. **Mistralian immigrants**
    1. **Weiss Schnee, she was thinking of criminal organizations from Mistral and she forgot that Pyrrha was from Mistral**
  3. **Jaune and Pyrrha's unresolved sexual tension**
    1. **Lie Ren, he knew this would be the winning card, regardless of what was submitted by his fellow players**
  4. **The radicalization of faunus youth**
    1. **Ruby Rose, she was thinking along the lines of the White Fang and how they became a problem under Sienna Khan and Adam Taurus**
  5. **Vilifying the White Fang while making the Schnees, their oppressors, the heroes**
    1. **Nora Valkyrie, she went with a logical sounding answer based on Pyrrha not wanting an offensive answer for the sake of it being offensive**
  6. **Too. Much. Dust.**
    1. **Oscar Pine, he didn't know what to throw in so he chose a card that sounded like a problem that would happen in the real world**



_TO BE CONTINUED..._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Based on: Cards Against Humanity 
> 
> I just want to say, making up horrifying RWBY card answers was really fun.
> 
> Also, yes, the players are a bit random. My reasoning for my player choices:  
> 1) I feel like I've been using Blake and Yang more than Ruby and Weiss. So, to balance things out, Ruby and Weiss are playing.  
> 2) I wanted more Nora and Ren in this fic.  
> 3) Penny and Pyrrha haven't been in major roles, so I brought them into the game to give them a chance in the spotlight.  
> 4) I haven't used Oscar Pine yet.


	16. RWNRPPO play Cards Against Remnant (Part 2)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ruby, Weiss, Nora, Ren, Pyrrha, Penny, and Oscar play a...questionable game.

ROUND 9: LIE REN II

Ruby stared down Ren as he picked up another black card. Although she was in the lead, Ren was close to catching up to her. For some reason, this game was bringing out her competitive side, a fact that was starting to make Weiss concerned. _This might be a horrible game...but I still want to win!_

"Everyone ready for this?" Ren asked as he quickly eyed his black card, "Alright...'What files are in Qrow's laptop?'."

Ruby giggled as she looked through her crowds. Although she loved her uncle...she was not above making fun of him. 

Nora, seeing Ruby's smile, pouted as she looked through her own cards. All Ruby needed was two more cards and she would win. _Not on my watch! I just gotta make sure Renny picks mine!_

After everyone submitted their cards, Ren reached over and picked up the file. "Before we begin," he said as he turned to Ruby, "I just want to remind everyone...Ruby is two points away from winning. So try to avoid answers that sound like Ruby-"

"-CHEATER! THAT'S CHEATING!" Ruby whined. 

"I agree with Renny," Nora said with a smirk. Ruby stuck her tongue out at Nora as Weiss facepalmed. 

"Oh for Oum's sake, it's Cards Against Remnant," Weiss growled, "It's not that serious." 

**CARD: What files are in Qrow's laptop?**

  1. Sexy Grimm Calendar 
    1. Ren: Oh Oum...now that's an image I won't be getting out of my head.
    2. Ruby: ACH, IT BURNS. 
    3. Pyrrha: Unless that card means sexy Salem-
    4. Weiss: -how does that make it any better?
    5. Pyrrha: ...you're right, you're right. 
  2. Their hopes and dreams 
    1. Ren: Whoa, that's a bit harsh to Ruby's uncle.
    2. Ruby: That's just sad to think about. 
  3. The entire Team FNKI discography 
    1. Ren: Oh, that's a fun one. 
    2. Penny: What music are they known for? 
    3. Oscar: Jazz. They're pretty good, I used to listen to them while I worked on the farm. 
    4. Nora: My favorite album of them is 'FNKItown'. Seriously, "Downtown with my Dust" and "Aura Aurora"...Neon Katt kills those songs! 
  4. Jacques Schnee's abs 
    1. Ren: Gross.
    2. Weiss: GROSS, THAT'S MY FATHER. 
    3. Penny: Friend Weiss, does your father actually have abs-
    4. Weiss: -are you actually asking me that, Penny?
    5. Penny: ...never mind! 
  5. The Fifth Maiden, known as 'Iron' 
    1. Ren: Huh? What does this mean?
    2. Pyrrha: Oh, it's an 'Iron Maiden' joke. 
    3. Ren: Ah, gotcha. 
  6. Rule 63 Adam Taurus 
    1. Ren: Female Adam Taurus...that's an interesting image. 
    2. Ruby: You think she'd be just as angsty and controlling as male Adam? 
    3. Weiss: Eh, probably. I mean, the only thing different here is the gender. No reason their personalities would change. 



Ren worked fast, getting rid of most of the cards. All that were left was "The Entire FNKI discography" and "Their hopes and dreams". After pondering his choices for a few more seconds, he discarded one of the cards...

...and held up "Their hopes and dreams" as the winner.

"It's both funny and offensive," Ren said, "Good enough for me. Who submitted this?" 

With a big grin on her face, Nora leaned over and grabbed the card from Ren.

"Thank you, Renny," Nora chirped, "Momma's got her groove back!" 

**SCORE**

  1. **Ruby: 3**
  2. **Weiss: 1**
  3. **Nora: 2**
  4. **Ren: 2**
  5. **Pyrrha: 0**
  6. **Penny: 0**
  7. **Oscar: 1**



**WHO SUBMITTED WHAT**

  1. **Sexy Grimm Calendar**
    1. **Penny Polendina, she thought that a calendar would be found on anyone's laptop and the fact that it was Grimm-centric would be a funny answer**
  2. **Their hopes and dreams**
    1. **Nora Valkyrie, she thought it was the funniest response**
  3. **The entire Team FNKI discography**
    1. **Ruby Rose, she was going off of the fact that Ren wanted logical answers and that she remembered her Uncle Qrow listened to jazz from time to time**
  4. **Jacques Schnee's abs**
    1. **Pyrrha Nikos, she thought that finding a picture of Jacques' abs would be horrible for anyone, so it fit the game**
  5. **The Fifth Maiden, known as 'Iron'**
    1. **Weiss Schnee, she thought the 'Iron Maiden' joke was clever**
  6. **Rule 63 Adam Taurus**
    1. **Oscar Pine, he thought it'd be hilarious and ridiculous if someone were to find a picture of a genderbent Adam in their laptop**



* * *

ROUND 10: PENNY II

"Friend Ren, but wouldn't it have been hilarious if someone were to find a sexy Grimm calendar on Qrow's laptop?" Penny asked as she grabbed a black card. Ren cringed at the thought.

"What would that even look?" Weiss said, a little disgusted with her own question. 

"Just imagine a Grimm...now picture it with giant boobs and a nice butt," Nora joked. Weiss' face started turning green at that mental image.

"Never mind the sexy Grimm calendar," Ruby whined, "But why didn't you pick Team FNKI's discography!"

"Hopes and dreams was funnier," Ren joked. Ruby sighed and sulked back in her chair, unhappy that Nora and Ren were close to cutting off her lead. 

Penny looked at her black card. _Oh dear...this will be an interesting one._ "Mine's says," Penny started, "'What the Schnees were going to build their company around, aside from dust'. Go for it, friends!"

Weiss frowned at another card aimed towards her family. "Don't be too rude now," she said to the group. 

"No promises," Nora joked as she slapped a card down on the table. 

**CARD: What the Schnees were going to build their company around, aside from dust**

  1. Kali Belladonna's bikini pics 
    1. Penny: Well, I do admit that Blake's mom is quite attractive. Although it would be strange for a major corporation to center their business around her bikini pictures. 
    2. Pyrrha: Unless they wanted to become the next Playboy. 
    3. Weiss: Are we seriously discussing this? It's Blake's mom. 
    4. Pyrrha: Hey, don't blame me, blame whoever submitted that card for this round! 
  2. White hair dye 
    1. Penny: Good one! Very appropriate for the Schnees! 
    2. Weiss: I'll have you know that my hair is naturally white! I don't need to use any type of dye to maintain the color. 
    3. Ruby: Then maybe this is for people who want to look like a Schnee?
    4. Nora: Who would want to do that-
    5. Weiss: -HEY! 
  3. Sexy vampire fanfiction 
    1. Penny: Oh, that's...interesting. 
    2. Oscar: So wouldn't that just make the SDC a publishing company? 
    3. Ren: Well, they wouldn't last that long...especially after all the copyright lawsuits. 
  4. A mountain of paperwork that would make Ozpin and Glynda want to commit suicide 
    1. Penny: Well that seems to be quite a problem. A corporation that's centered on the torture of Beacon Academy's headmasters. 
    2. Weiss: Knowing what they usually have to deal with...it's probably reports about all of the property damage we're responsible for-
    3. Ruby: -HEY! 
    4. Weiss: Oh hush, you know it's true. 
  5. Dead dogs 
    1. Penny: So dark! 
    2. Ruby: ZWEI! 
    3. Oscar: Well, it's technically not about Zwei...I mean, it doesn't specify which dog-
    4. Ruby: NOT HELPING OSCAR! 
  6. Team RWBY baby pictures 
    1. Penny: Awww...such a cute response.
    2. Nora: Eh, Team JNPR's baby pics are cuter.
    3. Weiss: Pfft, in your dreams, Valkyrie. 
    4. Nora: Schnee, we literally have a cereal mascot on our team! 
    5. Pyrrha: Hey, what's that supposed to mean!? 



After going through all six of the submissions, Penny went with the one that she felt made the most sense with the prompt. To the surprise of no one in the room, she held up the 'white hair dye' card. 

"YES!" Nora yelped as she grabbed the card. Ruby, on the other hand, shrieked, realizing she was now tied with Nora.

"It's neck-and-neck, Rose!"

"Game's not over yet, Nora!" Ruby snapped back. 

**SCORE**

  1. **Ruby: 3**
  2. **Weiss: 1**
  3. **Nora: 3**
  4. **Ren: 2**
  5. **Pyrrha: 0**
  6. **Penny: 0**
  7. **Oscar: 1**



**WHO SUBMITTED WHAT**

  1. **Kali Belladonna's bikini pics**
    1. **Oscar Pine, he had the same idea as Pyrrha that the SDC would be a company similar to Playboy if they invested in pictures of Kali Belladonna**
  2. **White hair dye**
    1. **Nora Valkyrie, she felt that this card fit the prompt the best**
  3. **Sexy vampire fanfiction**
    1. **Ruby Rose, she didn't have a good card for this round so she threw out a card she had no interest in**
  4. **A mountain of paperwork that would make Ozpin and Glynda want to commit suicide**
    1. **Lie Ren, he reasoned that whatever the company would be involved in, it would result in a massive amount of paperwork**
  5. **Dead dogs**
    1. **Pyrrha Nikos, she shamefully submitted this card with the reasoning that a horrible company like the SDC would probably be involved with something else just as horrifying**
  6. **Team RWBY baby pictures**  

    1. **Weiss Schnee, she thought the idea that the SDC would become solely focused on baby pictures of her team was hilarious**



* * *

ROUND 11: WEISS II

"My turn again," Weiss said as she leaned over to grab a card. As she did, Ruby and Nora stared each other down. Their competitive sides were coming out and, although it was all in good fun, Weiss couldn't help but roll her eyes at the two of them. It's not that she couldn't be competitive...she just didn't think this was the type of game worth getting competitive over. 

"Two more cards, red" Nora said with a cheeky grin. Ruby scoffed at her for that.

"Same with me!" 

"Alright, alright," Weiss said, getting Ruby and Nora's attention, "My prompt is...oh for Oum's sake...'Is that a __________ in your semblance or are you just happy to see me?' Don't make it too dirty, please!" 

"You're pretty much just asking us not to play this game," Ren joked as he submitted his card.

"We could play 'Apples to Apples' next time if the game's starting to bother you," Ruby said. Weiss shook her head, not wanting to be a downer.

"That's okay...I'm still having fun."

"Okay!"

**CARD: Is that a __________ in your semblance or are you just happy to see me?**

  1. Boner 
    1. Weiss: Blech...that's not even remotely clever.
    2. Nora: Too straightforward! I mean, the prompt is obviously a dick joke. That just ruins it! 
    3. Pyrrha: Since when did you become the expert in toilet humor? 
    4. Nora: I just like good comedy, okay.
  2. Roman Torchwick's swaggalicious bowler hat 
    1. Weiss: Even though we're not too fond of that man...his hat did look good on him.
    2. Oscar: Wait, so you like that answer-
    3. Weiss: -no, I'm just pointing something out. 
  3. Crescent Rose 
    1. Weiss: Ruby, is this your card-
    2. Ruby: -NO! Do you really think I'm that corny, Weiss?
    3. Weiss: Yes.
    4. Ruby: Well...well...I'm not!
  4. Blake's Bellabooty 
    1. Weiss: Oh my Oum...seriously? 
    2. Oscar: Is Blake's butt really that-
    3. Ruby: -do you really want to finish that train of thought, Oscar?
    4. Penny: Well...from an objective perspective, her butt does look quite firm. Probably as a result of all the training she's had to do. 
    5. Pyrrha: Penny! Too much information!
    6. Penny: I'm just pointing out a possible explanation for friend Blake's firm buttocks!
    7. Weiss: Okay, okay, okay, we've spent way too long on this topic! 
  5. Ability to sense vibrations in a way that allows you to view the world similar to sonar, like Daredevil or Toph Bei Fong 
    1. Weiss: Well, this one's not even trying to be funny. It's just...logical. I mean, this sounds like a legitimate semblance.
    2. Nora: Booooo! Don't just pick it because it makes sense! 
    3. Ren: And now Nora's given away that this isn't her card.
    4. Nora: Renny! 
  6. Dick pic from Scarlet David 
    1. Weiss: I wonder what Sun would think of this card. Knowing the man, he probably came up with this card. 
    2. Penny: Friends, is it a common thing to receive pictures of body parts on your scrolls? 
    3. Pyrrha: Uh...no? 
    4. Oscar: Sounds like a city problem. That stuff doesn't happen on the farm. 



To the surprise of no one in the room, Weiss threw out most of the cards and held up the sonar semblance card as the winner. Pretty much everyone knew that card was going to win when Weiss commented that it was the most logical of the submissions.

"Yes, finally!" 

Nora and Ren clapped as Pyrrha Nikos leaned over and took the card from Weiss. After so many rounds, she was finally on the scoreboard.

"Wait to go, Pyrrha!" Nora shouted.

"I don't even care if I lose the game," Pyrrha said, "I'm just happy that I won a round!"

**SCORE**

  1. **Ruby: 3**
  2. **Weiss: 1**
  3. **Nora: 3**
  4. **Ren: 2**
  5. **Pyrrha: 1**
  6. **Penny: 0**
  7. **Oscar: 1**



**WHO SUBMITTED WHAT**

  1. **Boner**
    1. **Lie Ren, he figured that since this prompt was a dick joke, he would just cut to the chase and submit a card that was related to dicks**
  2. **Roman Torchwick's swaggalicious bowler hat**
    1. **Ruby Rose, she thought it'd be a funny sight to see Roman's hat in anyone's semblance**
  3. **Crescent Rose**
    1. **Oscar Pine, he thought that it'd be funny for someone to have Ruby's giant scythe trapped inside their semblance**
  4. **Blake's Bellabooty**
    1. **Penny Polendina, she thought that since this card was a crude sex joke, she went with a card that was related to sex appeal**
  5. **Ability to sense vibrations in a way that allows you to view the world similar to sonar, like Daredevil or Toph Bei Fong**
    1. **Pyrrha Nikos, knowing Weiss, she went with the most logical answer to the prompt**
  6. **Dick pic from Scarlet David**
    1. **Nora Valkyrie, she wasn't really trying to win this round, she was more just trying to troll Weiss**



* * *

ROUND 12: OSCAR II

As Pyrrha calmed down from the high of finally winning a round, Oscar leaned in to grab a black card. "Okay, give me something good, preferably nothing about Ozpin or Salem," he muttered to himself as he flipped the black card over to read it. _Well...not the worst thing ever._

"What did you get, Oscar?" Ruby asked. 

"Alright, this is another two-part prompt," Oscar said, "'This year's Vytal Festival will feature ____________, who will be performing the act of _________________'. So we need a noun and an activity."

"Fair enough," Ren said with a nod as he looked through his cards. 

**CARD: This year's Vytal Festival will feature ____________, who will be performing the act of _________________**

  1. Team RWBY / Smelling each other's feet 
    1. Oscar: UMMMMMMMM...WELL THEN-
    2. Ruby: EW, EW, EW, EW, EW!
    3. Weiss: WHO CAME UP WITH THAT COMBINATION?! 
    4. Nora: (bursts out laughing) 
    5. Pyrrha: (trying her best not to laugh, but then joining Nora in laughing at Ruby and Weiss)
    6. Penny: Well...that's certainly an interesting way to...bond as a team.
    7. Ren: Penny, no, it's not. 
  2. The Great King of Vale / Circumcision 
    1. Oscar: Ouch...I don't want to even imagine it.
    2. Ren: Same here (crosses his legs as if to protect his private parts) 
    3. Nora: But in a weird way, wouldn't it be an honor if a legendary figure did that to you-
    4. Oscar and Ren: -no. 
  3. Clover Ebi / Side character tragically dying for character development 
    1. Oscar: Whoa...too real.
    2. Penny: Indeed...
  4. Vacuan immigrants / Punching fucking stupid Arthur Watts' stupid fucking face which is a fucking stupid 
    1. Oscar: That's exactly what it says, I'm not exaggerating. 
    2. Penny: Well...I do agree that Watts has a punchable face.
    3. Nora: Same.
    4. Ruby: Same.
    5. Weiss: Same. 
  5. Sexy faunus models / Grinding on the dancefloor at Junior's nightclub 
    1. Oscar: Ooooohhhhhhh...it's crude but it's a winning combination. But it doesn't really have to do with the Vytal Festival? 
    2. Pyrrha: Uh...true, but so far, none of these have had anything to do with Vytal.
    3. Oscar: Fair point. 
  6. Drunken Willow Schnee / UNITED STATES OF SMASH! 
    1. Oscar: Oh, an "Academia, the Hero that is Mine" reference! But...who's Willow Schnee?
    2. Weiss: My mom. And yes, she has a drinking problem.
    3. Ruby: I can relate.
    4. Oscar: Weiss, is she the type of person you could imagine going into a major battle? Just curious. 
    5. Weiss: No, she's not.
    6. Oscar: Aww...so this combo doesn't work then! 



Oscar sighed, looking at all his possible picks. "There's a lot of good ones this time around," he muttered to himself. The other six players leaned in, eager to see if he was going to pick theirs. 

After thinking it through, Oscar reached down...and picked "Sexy faunus models / Grinding on the dancefloor at Junior's nightclub".

"Alright, here's my reasoning. I was going to pick 'United States of Smash' because that's referencing one of my favorite animes...but apparently it doesn't work because Weiss' mom isn't a fighter. And the Arthur Watts one made me laugh but it's also just kind of random. So I had to go with the faunus models, at least that one made the most sense."

"Sensational!" Penny cheered as she won her first round.

"Looks like everyone's on the scoreboard now," Pyrrha said as she grinned at Penny. 

**SCORE**

  1. **Ruby: 3**
  2. **Weiss: 1**
  3. **Nora: 3**
  4. **Ren: 2**
  5. **Pyrrha: 1**
  6. **Penny: 1**
  7. **Oscar: 1**



**WHO SUBMITTED WHAT**

  1. **Team RWBY / Smelling each other's feet**
    1. **Nora Valkyrie, just like the last round, she was trying to troll Ruby and Weiss**
  2. **The Great King of Vale / Circumcision**
    1. **Weiss Schnee, she didn't have a lot of good options so she panicked and did a random combination**
  3. **Clover Ebi / Side character tragically dying for character development**
    1. **Lie Ren, he hated this combination but it made sense to him**
  4. **Vacuan immigrants / Punching fucking stupid Arthur Watts' stupid fucking face which is a fucking stupid**
    1. **Pyrrha Nikos, she realized this combination was a little random but she justified it by imagining Sun Wukong beating up Arthur Watts**
  5. **Sexy faunus models / Grinding on the dancefloor at Junior's nightclub**
    1. **Penny Polendina, she reasoned that attractive models dancing at a nightclub would be a logical combination, even though it had nothing to do with the Vytal Festival.**
  6. **Drunken Willow Schnee / UNITED STATES OF SMASH!**
    1. **Ruby Rose, she thought it'd be funny to imagine Weiss' mom with the Uno-Encompassing-Everything ability from "Academia, the Hero that is Mine". She also knew Oscar would love that answer since they watch the show together.**



* * *

ROUND 13: RUBY II

Ruby's face was a mild shade of green as she leaned over to grab a black card. She was still thinking about the previous round.

_EW! I don't want to smell anyone's feet, especially my own teammates! Who would do that to themselves?!_

"Hey, before I read my card," Ruby said, "Who did the 'Team RWBY smells each other's feet' combination?"

Laughing, Nora raised her hand. Pyrrha and Ren facepalmed while Ruby and Weiss couldn't help but look betrayed.

"Why?!" Ruby yelped.

"I just thought it'd be funny," Nora joked. 

"Darn it, Nora," Ren said, shaking his head at her. 

Knowing who the culprit was, Ruby turned her attention to the black card. "Okay, okay," she said, "Moving on...the prompt is 'Other uses for Weiss' Arma Gigas'." 

Weiss' eyes widened upon hearing what the prompt was and leaned over to Ruby's side to make sure that was right. She frowned when she saw that it was. 

"Make it funny, you guys!" Ruby said with a giggle. Weiss scowled at that, not wanting to see what the others came up with. 

**CARD: Other uses for Weiss' Arma Gigas**

  1. Backup date for the Beacon Dance 
    1. Ruby: Aww...remember the Beacon Dance? 
    2. Weiss: Seems so long ago now. 
    3. Oscar: Still, I can't imagine the Arma Gigas being your date to a dance. That seems a bit much. 
  2. Twerking 
    1. Ruby: Yes! This is what I'm talking about! 
    2. Weiss: Great, now I have that image stuck in my head.
    3. Ren: Could that thing even twerk? I mean, it's a suit of armor.
    4. Nora: Well, only one way to find out. Weiss, bring it out-
    5. Weiss: -NO.
    6. Nora: Come on, let's find out if it can make that ass clap-
    7. Weiss: -SHUT. IT. NOW. 
  3. Making a milkshake that will bring all the boys to the yard, that'll be better than yours, and can be taught but they would have to charge 
    1. Ruby: ♫ My milkshake brings all the boys to the yard ♫
    2. Pyrrha: ♫ And they're like, it's better than yours ♫
    3. Penny: ♫ Damn right, it's better than yours ♫
    4. Nora: ♫ I can teach you, but I have to charge ♫
    5. Oscar: ...am I the only one who doesn't know that song? 
  4. Jumping in the air with your guns out and firing at a canister of Dust, like a boss 
    1. Ruby: Action movie moves! I like this one! 
    2. Ren: Sounds like something Yang would do. 
    3. Ruby: Yeah, I agree with that. 
  5. Practicing kissing 
    1. Ruby: Uhhhhhhhhhhhhhh...
    2. Penny: That seems like an odd use for the Arma Gigas. 
    3. Oscar: How would you even reach its face to kiss?
    4. Weiss: Argh...this round's almost over...just gotta deal with it for a few more minutes...
  6. Double penetration 
    1. Ruby: NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO-
    2. Weiss: -OKAY, WE'RE DONE HERE. RUBY PICK THE WINNER.



Ruby quickly threw away the 'double penetration' card, as expected by the group. Then, among the surviving cards, she tossed them into the discard pile one-by-one. 

'Practicing kissing' was next, that card didn't interest Ruby. 'Twerking' was then tossed out, Ruby thought it was funny at first but later decided it wasn't as funny as she thought it was. After some more deliberation, 'backup date' was tossed out since Ruby didn't find it that interesting. Finally, between 'milkshake' and 'jumping in the air', she went with her gut...

...and picked 'jumping in the air'. It appealed to her love of guns and action.

Much to Ruby's dismay, Nora leaned over and grabbed the card. "Thanks Ruby!" Nora sneered, "One more and I win!"

"We'll see about that," Ruby grumbled to herself. 

**SCORE**

  1. **Ruby: 3**
  2. **Weiss: 1**
  3. **Nora: 4**
  4. **Ren: 2**
  5. **Pyrrha: 1**
  6. **Penny: 1**
  7. **Oscar: 1**



**WHO SUBMITTED WHAT**

  1. **Backup date for the Beacon Dance**
    1. **Lie Ren, he reasoned that since Weiss could summon the Arma Gigas, she could use it for something mundane like the Beacon Dance**
  2. **Twerking**
    1. **Pyrrha Nikos, she had no idea what to submit so she just picked the first card in her hand**
  3. **Making a milkshake that will bring all the boys to the yard, that'll be better than yours, and can be taught but they would have to charge**
    1. **Weiss Schnee, she hated this round so she picked a card that wouldn't make her cringe**
  4. **Jumping in the air with your guns out and firing at a canister of Dust, like a boss**
    1. **Nora Valkyrie, she knew that Ruby would pick her card since it mentioned guns**
  5. **Practicing kissing**
    1. **Oscar Pine, he had no idea what to submit so he picked this card by reasoning that Weiss could use Arma Gigas for a random reason**
  6. **Double penetration**
    1. **Penny Polendina, she was thinking more in terms of combat, that Weiss could stab someone with Myrtenaster while the Arma Gigas would deliver a follow-up strike**



* * *

ROUND 14: NORA II

Ruby sighed in relief, realizing that Nora was next. _The game lives for at least one more round!_

Nora leaned over and grabbed a black card. Leaning back in her chair, she read off the prompt.

"Hmm...'Team CRMEN's team-building exercises'. Alright, lay it on me."

**CARD: Team CRMEN's team-building exercises**

  1. Getting arrested by the Atlas military 
    1. Nora: Huh...sounds like something that would happen in real life. 
    2. Ren: Yeah, nothing too out of the ordinary with that response. 
  2. Being trapped in a Vacuan prison 
    1. Nora: Whoa...really? That's a bit of a coincidence.
    2. Ruby: Yeah, what are the odds that there'd be two responses about getting arrested. 
    3. Weiss: Feels a bit appropriate since this is CRMEN we're talking about. 
    4. Penny: Hey, what did friend Sun used to say about prisons in Vacuo? 
    5. Pyrrha: I think he said something along the lines of, "Don't ever get arrested in Vacuo". 
    6. Nora: Huh, sounds familiar
  3. Arrested after being framed for Clover Ebi's murder 
    1. Nora: ...huh? WHAT? 
    2. Oscar: That prompt being dark and distasteful aside...whoa.
    3. Penny: It's like we all coordinated with each other this round! 
  4. Life in prison for cutting Yang's hair 
    1. Nora: OH MY OUM, IS THIS REALLY HAPPENING?!
    2. Ruby: Keep it going! This is amazing!
    3. Oscar: Come on...two more and it'll be perfect! 
  5. Running from the police for telling 'yo mama' jokes to Ruby Rose 
    1. Nora: Okay, this card is in poor taste but still, we're FIVE-FOR-FIVE. ONE MORE!
    2. Pyrrha: Is this it? Are we going to have a perfect six? 
    3. Penny: Hmm...chances of that are low but...who knows?
  6. Spending a night in jail after a long night of drinking and snorting Dust 
    1. Nora: IT'S A PERFECT SIX FOR SIX!
    2. Penny: Sensational! Extraordinary! Magnificent! 
    3. Weiss: Wow. Just...wow.
    4. Ren: I've never seen that happen in this game before.
    5. Pyrrha: Me neither...whoa, I gotta text Jaune after this. He's gonna freak out! 
    6. Ruby: DID WE ALL JUST READ EACH OTHER'S MINDS?!
    7. Oscar: This is amazing! 



Before Nora made her choice, everyone took photos of the pile with their scrolls. Weiss instantly uploaded her photo to her social media accounts with the comment, "So...this just happened during #CardsAgainstRemnant". Meanwhile, Ruby texted Yang and Blake, who both texted back laughing emojis. 

After settling down from the high of the realization that everyone submitted a card related to getting captured by the police, Nora sorted through her choices to pick a winner. The problem was, since all of them were all in the same ballpark, Nora didn't feel too strongly about any of her choices.

So, she picked a card on random.

"Alright," Nora started, "Just because it's kinda funny to think about, I'm going with 'Life in prison for cutting Yang's hair'. Who submitted that one?"

Weiss cheered and grabbed the black card from Nora. 

"This is my favorite round so far," Weiss joked. 

**SCORE**

  1. **Ruby: 3**
  2. **Weiss: 2**
  3. **Nora: 4**
  4. **Ren: 2**
  5. **Pyrrha: 1**
  6. **Penny: 1**
  7. **Oscar: 1**



**WHO SUBMITTED WHAT**

  1. **Getting arrested by the Atlas military**
    1. **Lie Ren, since this was a prompt about CRMEN, he specifically chose the card that had to do with getting arrested**
  2. **Being trapped in a Vacuan prison**
    1. **Pyrrha Nikos, since this was a prompt about CRMEN, she specifically chose the card that had to do with getting arrested**
  3. **Arrested after being framed for Clover Ebi's murder**
    1. **Oscar Pine, since this was a prompt about CRMEN, he specifically chose the card that had to do with getting arrested (although he did hesitate since this card was a bit dark, even for the game)**
  4. **Life in prison for cutting Yang's hair**
    1. **Weiss Schnee, since this was a prompt about CRMEN, she specifically chose the card that had to do with getting arrested. Also, she thought it'd be funny considering how much Yang loves her hair.**
  5. **Running from the police for telling 'yo mama' jokes to Ruby Rose**
    1. **Penny Polendina, since this was a prompt about CRMEN, she specifically chose the card that had to do with getting arrested**
  6. **Spending a night in jail after a long night of drinking and snorting Dust**
    1. **Ruby Rose, since this was a prompt about CRMEN, she specifically chose the card that had to do with getting arrested**



* * *

ROUND 15: PYRRHA III

"Let's go Pyrrha!" Nora cheered as Pyrrha leaned over to grab a black card, "Remember, I'm your teammate so-"

"-hey, hey, hey, hey," Pyrrha said, waving Nora off, "No favorites!"

"Yeah!" Ruby chimed in.

Nora just shrugged the both of them off. "Just saying...we are team JNPR, remember that!"

"And how am I supposed to know which card is yours?" Pyrrha said, dully.

"Easy...it's the best one."

The whole group groaned as Nora laughed at all of them. It was getting a bit late in the night so they figured she was going a bit loopy. 

"Let's see here," Pyrrha muttered as she read her card, "'What is underneath Adam Taurus' mask?' Okay, another White Fang card."

"Wish I had a card that said 'edgy anime rival energy' for this round," Ruby joked as she turned in her card.

**CARD: What is underneath Adam Taurus' mask?**

  1. Crocea Mors 
    1. Pyrrha: Really? Jaune's weapon? 
    2. Weiss: Hello, throwaway card.
    3. Penny: I don't understand how that relates to the prompt at all. 
  2. The whereabouts of Mercury Black's mom 
    1. Pyrrha: Aww...that's actually kind of sad.
    2. Oscar: But it's kind of weird. Like, imagine him taking his mask off and you see this map on his face with an X where Mercury's mom is. 
    3. Ruby: Then he'll say something like, "I tattooed this map on my face so that I will be the only one who will know where your mother is being held!" 
    4. Ren: Wait...what? Ruby, what's the logic there?
    5. Ruby: Um...actually, I don't know. Forget I said anything. 
  3. Dust that improves your sex life 
    1. Pyrrha: Ooh boy, I don't want to think about Adam Taurus getting it on with...anyone, really. 
    2. Nora: Imagine if he did do that though. Like during battle, he accidentally trips and the sex Dust gets into his eyes. 
    3. Weiss: That's...definitely interesting.
  4. Adam Taurus 
    1. Pyrrha: OH COME ON, THIS IS PERFECT. 
    2. Oscar: Well, there it is. Pyrrha you can stop, we know who won.
    3. Ren: Job well done to whoever's card that it. 
    4. Weiss: See, this is why I don't like it when the card just says our name. 
  5. The blueprints to Robyn Hill's re-election campaign 
    1. Pyrrha: Um...that's cool, I guess. 
    2. Weiss: So what do you think the blueprints say? 'Vote me to save Mantle'? 
    3. Ren: 'Vote for me or else Ironwood will kill us all'? 
    4. Oscar: 'I'm not Jacques Schnee so I should automatically be the person you're rooting for'? 
    5. Ren: That's kind of a low bar.
    6. Weiss: Well, it's my father, of course the bar is low. 
  6. Classic Mistralian art depicting two men humping each other 
    1. Pyrrha: Oh dear...
    2. Nora: Got something to say to that, Pyr?
    3. Pyrrha: Well...I know what this card is referring to.
    4. Penny: Yes indeed. Classic Mistralian art was a lot more open to what they would portray on the canvas! 
    5. Pyrrha: Let's just say I've seen some...questionable art, in the past.



After going through all six cards, Pyrrha instantly pulled out the 'Adam Taurus' card and held it up. At this point, deliberating was just a formality, she knew this card won the second she read it. 

"ONE MORE POINT! I JUST NEED ONE MORE POINT!" 

Ruby screamed in joy as she took the black card from Pyrrha. Nora gasped, realizing that they were tied once again and that it was now down to the last card. 

Everyone in the room realized that the winner was going to be either Ruby or Nora. It was only a matter of time till one of them won. 

**SCORE**

  1. **Ruby: 4**
  2. **Weiss: 2**
  3. **Nora: 4**
  4. **Ren: 2**
  5. **Pyrrha: 1**
  6. **Penny: 1**
  7. **Oscar: 1**



**WHO SUBMITTED WHAT**

  1. **Crocea Mors**
    1. **Oscar Pine, throwaway round for him**
  2. **The whereabouts of Mercury Black's mom**
    1. **Penny Polendina, she thought that blueprints being tattooed on someone's face would be a good reason to wear a mask**
  3. **Dust that improves your sex life**
    1. **Nora Valkyrie, she thought it'd be funny to think about vials of sex Dust hidden behind Adam's mask**
  4. **Adam Taurus**
    1. **Ruby Rose, she knew this was the perfect response as soon as Pyrrha revealed the prompt**
  5. **The blueprints to Robyn Hill's re-election campaign**
    1. **Lie Ren, he thought that blueprints being tattooed on someone's face would be a good reason to wear a mask**
  6. **Classic Mistralian art depicting two men humping each other**
    1. **Weiss Schnee, she thought Pyrrha would pick this since she's Mistralian**



* * *

ROUND 16: LIE REN III

"Alright, here we go," Ren said as he grabbed a black card. Nora and Ruby stared at Ren, eager to see what he had in his hand. Both women could feel victory was close. 

"'_____________ Academy, even better than Beacon Academy. This is potentially for the win...or for the game to stall for one more round."

"Let's do this," Nora said as she slapped down her card.

"I'm coming for you, Valkyrie," Ruby said as she submitted her own.

**CARD: _____________ Academy, even better than Beacon Academy**

  1. Asserting human dominance over the faunus subhuman species 
    1. Ren: Unbelievably racist, my Oum...
    2. Ruby: Yeah, who submitted that! 
    3. Weiss: Is it bad that I chuckled just a little?
    4. Pyrrha: Uh...Weiss, really-
    5. Weiss: -no, no, no, no, no, not like that. It's just because it's so ridiculous! 
  2. The Branwen Tribe 
    1. Ren: Sounds like a bad idea based on what we know of Raven Branwen and her tribe.
    2. Ruby: Yeah...Uncle Qrow would probably cringe at the idea of Auntie Raven being a headmaster of any school. 
  3. Baking cookies like Summer Rose 
    1. Ren: Oh, that's sweet. So it's a culinary school then. 
    2. Ruby: Mom always made the best cookies! 
    3. Weiss: I like that answer. It's sweet. 
  4. Forging your application like Jaune Arc 
    1. Ren: That's a low blow.
    2. Nora: Seriously though...
    3. Pyrrha: Poor Jaune... 
    4. Penny: But on the plus side, an academy like this would probably be some sort of espionage academy. Or something to do with criminal justice. 
  5. Cardin being a racist douchebag 
    1. Ren: This is basically the first card. They're both calling for a racist academy that hates faunus.
    2. Oscar: This is such a dark round. 
  6. Neo fingering herself and not actually moaning since she's a mute 
    1. Ren: ...and now we're back to being dirty.
    2. Pyrrha: Oh my...that's an...interesting image. 



Ren took a deep breath as he looked through all six cards. After assessing each of them based on how funny they were and if they were able to relate to the prompt, he tossed five of the cards away...

...and held up "Baking cookies like Summer Rose" up as the winner.

"It's culinary school, I can see that being a good alternate route for someone who doesn't want to be a huntsman/huntress. Okay...so, is this game over or are we still continuing?" 

Everyone looked at Ruby, thinking she was the one submitted that card since it was about her mom. But then, to everyone's surprise...Nora reached over and grabbed the black card for the win.

Ruby slumped back in her seat as Nora pumped a fist in the air in victory. Despite a tough fight, she was still queen of Cards Against Remnant. 

**FINAL SCORE**

  1. **Ruby: 4**
  2. **Weiss: 2**
  3. **Nora: 5**
  4. **Ren: 2**
  5. **Pyrrha: 1**
  6. **Penny: 1**
  7. **Oscar: 1**



**WHO SUBMITTED WHAT**

  1. **Asserting human dominance over the faunus subhuman species**
    1. **Penny Polendina, she figured that an academy like this could potentially exist since it would appeal to some of the human population's anti-faunus tendencies**
  2. **The Branwen Tribe**
    1. **Weiss Schnee, she didn't have strong cards for this round so she threw in a random one**
  3. **Baking cookies like Summer Rose**
    1. **Nora Valkyrie, she had the same thought as Ren that a school centered around Summer Rose' baking would just be culinary school**
  4. **Forging your application like Jaune Arc**
    1. **Ruby Rose, she thought she had the edge since the card mentioned Jaune and that an academy like this would probably be specialized for police or spies**
  5. **Cardin being a racist douchebag**
    1. **Pyrrha Nikos, she didn't have strong cards for this round so she threw in a random one**
  6. **Neo fingering herself and not actually moaning since she's a mute**
    1. **Oscar Pine, he wanted to see how Ren would react**



* * *

BONUS ROUND: THE HAIKU

"So close!" 

Ruby sighed as she shook hands with Nora.

"Maybe next time, Rubes," Nora said as she let go of Ruby's hand and sat back in her chair, savoring the victory.

"Next time! I'm gonna come back stronger!" 

"This isn't really the kind of game you'd improve at," Weiss pointed out, "It's all just luck and guessing." 

"Well...yeah, but...you know what I mean!"

Nora clapped her hands, grabbing everyone's attention. "Alright, since I won," she said, "We go into the last round."

"Haiku?" Penny asked. Nora nodded her head vigorously at that.

"Let's say this...whoever wins at the haiku gets to share the crown with me!"

"Huh, how does that work?" Oscar asked.

"Just...don't think about it too hard! Whoever wins at haiku will be the co-winner of this session of Cards Against Remnant, let's leave it at that. And since I won, I will select the winning combination!" 

With that, everyone looked through their remaining cards for the final, final round. 

**THE HAIKU (ANY COMBINATION OF THREE OF THE PLAYER'S CARDS)**

  1. The "Grimm" Adventures of RWBY AND JNPR / Kicking things off with a "Yang" / Yang and Taiyang's annoying puns 
    1. Nora: Ohhh, we're off to a good start!
    2. Weiss: Seriously, whoever had those cards got lucky.
  2. The Arc family annual reunion / Unexpected teenage pregnancy / Pulling a Raven Branwen and abandoning your child 
    1. Nora: Even better! They told a story!
    2. Ruby: A bit harsh though...
  3. Team STRQ / Gay thoughts / Another goddamn harem featuring Jaune Arc 
    1. Nora: Huh? 
    2. Pyrrha: Looks like someone was trying to get rid of their cards. 
    3. Penny: Yes, it seemed to be telling a story, but then Jaune Arc was mentioned and ruined the whole flow. 
    4. Oscar: What story was it going to tell though?
    5. Penny: ...I don't know. 
  4. Ruby Rose / Rosegarden / She thinks my tractor's sexy 
    1. Nora: (bursts out laughing)
    2. Ruby: (turns bright red and looks away from Oscar)
    3. Oscar: (turns bright red and looks away from Ruby) 
    4. Pyrrha: Aw, that's a nice one.
    5. Ren: Whoever had the Oscar Pine card should've saved it for this round.
    6. Weiss: Still, there's the tractor card, so you know they're talking about a farmer. 
  5. Ember Celica / An endless supply of fire Dust / Explosive diarrhea explosion 
    1. Nora: Umm...I guess it works?
    2. Ren: Looks like someone was trying to connect everything with a theme of explosions.
    3. Ruby: Yup, we got the shotgun blasting, the fire from the Dust, and then the poop! 
    4. Weiss: Blech, let's move on. 
  6. Jinn of the Relic of Knowledge / A world where everyone raps / A commoner choosing to marry a lowly peasant 
    1. Nora: Ah, clever! I like that! 
    2. Pyrrha: I don't get it? 
    3. Ren: They're referencing the Aladdin movie. You know, which featured a rapping genie.
    4. Pyrrha: Ohhhhhhhhh. 



"You all did great!" Nora said as she looked through all six haikus, "But unfortunately...I gotta pick one." 

And after giving the haikus one more look-through, Nora raised the winning haiku up to the group.

"I gotta give it to the Jaune Arc family reunion, teenage pregnancy, and child abandonment," Nora said, "It was funny, told a story, and it actually made sense. These haikus usually never tell a story but this one did! I'm impressed! So, who is it?" 

Smiling...Pyrrha Nikos reached over and grabbed the haiku black card from Nora.

"I guess it's a JNPR night!" Pyrrha exclaimed. The whole group clapped as Pyrrha and Nora high-fived each other, the co-winners of this night's Cards Against Remnant. 

**WHO SUBMITTED WHAT**

  1. **The "Grimm" Adventures of RWBY AND JNPR / Kicking things off with a "Yang" / Yang and Taiyang's annoying puns**
    1. **Ruby Rose, she thought she could win just based on the 'annoying puns' card**
  2. **The Arc family annual reunion / Unexpected teenage pregnancy / Pulling a Raven Branwen and abandoning your child**
    1. **Pyrrha Nikos, she realized that she could tell a story with her cards when she started laying them out**
  3. **Team STRQ / Gay thoughts / Another goddamn harem featuring Jaune Arc**
    1. **Lie Ren, his remaining cards were too random to make any meaningful connection**
  4. **Ruby Rose / Rosegarden / She thinks my tractor's sexy**
    1. **Weiss Schnee, she knew she wanted to use the 'Ruby Rose' and 'Rosegarden' cards and lucked out when she realized she had a card that could reference Oscar**
  5. **Ember Celica / An endless supply of fire Dust / Explosive diarrhea explosion**
    1. **Penny Polendina, she was trying to connect them with the theme of explosions**
  6. **Jinn of the Relic of Knowledge / A world where everyone raps / A commoner choosing to marry a lowly peasant**
    1. **Oscar Pine, he was hoping someone would realize he was referencing the "Aladdin" movie**



**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Based on: Cards Against Humanity
> 
> And that's the conclusion of RWNRPPO's game night! Let me know if y'all want more Cards Against Remnant, these are pretty fun to do.


	17. RWE (Remnant Wrestling Entertainment): Episode 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> RWE Champion Weiss Schnee confronts her partner, Ruby Rose, after she challenged her for the title at Remnant-Mania 30...

CURRENT CHAMPIONS

Monday Night Aura (one half of the RWE) 

  1. RWE Championship (the main title in Monday Night Aura): Weiss Schnee
  2. The Mighty Mistralian Championship (the secondary title in Monday Night Aura): Flynt Coal
  3. The Aura Tag Team Championship: Team Black/Sun - Blake Belladonna, Sun Wukong 



Friday Night Dust (the other half of the RWE) 

  1. The God of Light Championship (the first main title in Friday Night Dust, equal to the Darkness belt): Robyn Hill 
  2. The God of Darkness Championship (the second main title in Friday Night Dust, equal to the Light belt): Qrow Branwen
  3. The Victorious Vacuan Championship (the secondary title in Friday Night Dust): Scarlet David 
  4. The Dust Tag Team Championship: The White Fang stable - Adam Taurus, Ilia Amitola (but the entire stable claims ownership of the belts)



NOTE: In the past, the main championship for Friday Night Dust was called "The Universal Brothers Championship". It was later split in half by Dust general manager Salem. Both the Light and Darkness championships hold equal prestige in Friday Night Dust

STAFF

  1. Chairman of the RWE: Ozpin
  2. Monday Night Aura general manager: Summer Rose 
  3. Friday Night Dust general manager: Salem 
  4. Commentary table: Bart Oobleck, Peter Port, Thumbelina Peach 



* * *

_FLASHBACK TO THE END OF THE REMNANT ROYAL RUMBLE_

_It was down to the last three competitors; Ruby Rose, who had entered at number 17, Mercury Black, who had entered at number 25, and Arthur Watts, who entered last at number 30. Ruby was tired, still beat up from trying to stay alive in the tournament. Mercury was tired as well but nowhere near as bad as Ruby. Watts, being the last competitor, was still at full strength._

_Ruby cursed to herself, wanting to win this tournament no matter what the cost was. This was the only way she could achieve her dream; the winner of the annual Royal Rumble could challenge for any of the top championship belts at Remnant-Mania. She had never been a world champion once and as of now, is the only member of the former Team RWBY to have never won a top belt._

_Yang won a top belt when she first went solo._

_Blake won a top belt a few months later._

_And now, Weiss was the current RWE champion._

_It was hard not to feel that she was being left behind. It was also hard not to feel she was cheated out of the top spot as she remembered that she had been screwed over in the past, preventing her from becoming a world champion. That's why she had to win...no matter what._

_Watts smirked as he ran towards Ruby. Ruby, who had been using the ring ropes to hold her steady, knew that she was good as out if Watts made contact with his clothesline. So, in a split second, she made her move. She quickly dropped down...and held onto the top rope as she ducked Watts._

_Watts couldn't react in time. With too much forward momentum, he tripped over the top rope and fell out onto the mat below._

_The crowd cheered as the man who was the least injured had been eliminated. Watts roared, hating the fact that he had fallen for such an easy trick._

_Ruby smiled as Watts was led away by staff. However, she quickly re-focused on the match, realizing it wasn't over yet. Sure enough, Mercury Black tried to take advantage by rushing Ruby while she had her back turned to him._

_Seeing this coming, Ruby rolled away from the ropes to the center of the ring. She then quickly got up, trying her best to ignore her injuries._

_I gotta finish this now, I gotta finish this now. Those were the only thoughts racing through Ruby's head. She knew she couldn't take this slow, she had to take Mercury out quick. And so...she went for it. As soon as Mercury turned around, Ruby went for her finishing move...the Swinging Scythe Kick (Kofi Kingston's Trouble in Paradise). The crowd roared as not only did Mercury get the wind knocked out of him, he stumbled back right onto the ropes._

_This is it!_

_Just like what Watts was trying to do earlier, Ruby yelled as she rushed Mercury with a clothesline. Unlike what happened with Watts, before Mercury had a chance to counter, Ruby made contact and managed to knock him over the top rope. Mercury fell back and crashed unceremoniously onto the mat._

**_DING DING DING_ **

_Ruby dropped to her knees, feeling like she was on top of the world. Tears of joy fell as she realized what just happened. She won the Royal Rumble. She got her chance at one of the RWE's top belts. It was a dream come true and the cherry on top...the whole crowd was cheering for her._

_Just one step closer to finally being a world champion..._

* * *

_FLASHBACK TO LAST WEEK'S MONDAY NIGHT AURA_

_All the current champions were standing around the ring, looking right at Ruby as she deliberated on which belt she was going to go after. They were all nervous; Robyn clung onto her God of Light belt as if it was about to evaporate away from her, Qrow stared down his niece hoping they wouldn't face each other, and Weiss was trying to read her partner's intentions, also hoping they wouldn't be fighting over her belt. Weiss respected the fact that Ruby was trying to be a world champion, she just hated that there was a possibility they were going to fight._

_"I gotta say, this is tough," Ruby said on the mic, "I've never been a world champion so...it's pretty much open season on all three of you." This made Weiss flinch a little._

_"But surely you're not going to pick me, right?" Qrow said on his mic. The crowd slightly booed the former alcoholic and a small-but-vocal chant of 'chicken' could be heard from the crowd. "You didn't let me finish. I'm not scared about losing my belt, I just don't think I should be fighting my niece."_

_"I understand, Uncle Qrow. But you have to admit...God of Darkness Champion Ruby Rose does have a nice ring to it." Qrow frowned, unhappy that his niece was seriously thinking about picking him._

_Ruby then turned to Robyn Hill, who gripped her belt even tighter. "Ms. Hill," Ruby said, "You have to admit as well...God of Light Champion Ruby Rose sounds pretty good, right?"_

_Robyn shook her head, leading to the crowd booing her. Robyn scoffed at the audience, then shouted on her mic, "I don't care what it sounds like, you're never going to take this from me." The booing increased as Robyn stared down Ruby. Ruby shrugged it off._

_"We'll see about that...and finally" - Ruby turned to Weiss - "RWE Champion Ruby Rose...you know, in comparison to the other two belts...that sounds the best to me."_

_Weiss' eyes widened. She didn't think Ruby was seriously going to consider going after her belt. It felt...wrong. After all, Ruby was her partner. They were even Aura Tag Team Champions at one point. Fighting a friend over...anything just didn't sit right with Weiss._

_"It does sound cool, Ruby," Weiss said on the mic, trying to keep the mood light, "But think about what you're saying, Ruby. If you pick me...we'll be facing off against each other. Is that what you want? I thought we were friends."_

_Ruby frowned. Weiss caught that. She couldn't confirm it but from how Ruby react, she realized that Ruby didn't like the 'friend' card being used against her._

_"You are my friend, Weiss," Ruby said, her tone a little less jovial than before, "But like I said...I want to be a world champion. So don't be talking about our friendship here, this has nothing to do with it. This is purely business."_

_"Since when were you all about business, you dolt?"_

_"Since I realized that I've never once been a top champion! Yang's been a champ, Blake's been a champ, and now you! I'm just doing what you three have been doing; fighting for what I want."_

_Weiss frowned. This...wasn't like Ruby. She was competitive, sure, but now it seemed like all she wanted was to win._

_Ruby began circling the three champions. As she did, the crowd began chanting, "Pick Robyn", causing the God of Light Champion to sigh unhappily. Weiss wasn't sure what was going to happen next and based on how Ruby was moving and acting, she couldn't predict her next move._

_Ruby stopped. She took a deep breath and sighed, as if she had made her decision. Bringing her mic to her face, Ruby said, "You're all great champions. I'd be honored to face any of you. But my mind is set and it's gotta be one of you."_

_The chanting of 'Robyn' grew even louder, making the Happy Huntress shrink in fear. At this point, she realized she was the most obvious pick. There was no way Ruby was going to fight her uncle or her partner. It had to be her._

_"And out of all the championships," Ruby continued, "There's one I've been aiming for ever since all of RWBY went solo. And once again...there's nothing personal in my decision. I just want to be a world champion, okay. Well...okay, just a teensy bit personal! I won't say why...for now. And that person who I'll be facing is-"_

_Then, much to the shock of the crowd...Ruby walked up to Weiss and glared at her. Weiss, not sure how to react, just stared back at her former partner._

_"-I'll be seeing you at Remnant-Mania, Weiss," Ruby said. Robyn Hill sighed in relief while Qrow couldn't help but gawk at his niece. Like the crowd, he was expecting Ruby to pick Robyn. And yet...she went for her former partner._

_The crowd clearly didn't like this choice. For the first time in Ruby's wrestling career, she was booed by the audience since they didn't want her to fight Weiss and were hoping to see Ruby vs. Robyn at Remnant-Mania. No one got an answer to why Ruby made her choice that night. The answer to that would have to come in next week's Monday Night Aura._

* * *

THIS WEEK'S MONDAY NIGHT AURA

Setting: Backstage, dressing room

Weiss Schnee was pacing the room, her RWE championship belt wrapped around her shoulders. She was set to meet Ruby in the ring in a few minutes. Even though it was just a few days ago, Weiss couldn't get over what happened. _She picked me! Why?! Doesn't she care that our friendship is on the line!?_

As she nervously paced the room, Blake and Yang entered. They both looked concerned, unhappy at the idea of Ruby fighting Weiss over anything. 

"I couldn't find Ruby," Yang said, "Looks like she's laying low until your meeting in the ring."

"How did this happen?" Weiss whined. Blake and Yang looked at each other, unsure how to respond.

"Look, it's Rubes," Yang continued, "I'm sure that she'll back off once you talk to her. Remember, she's the one who kept us together when we were RWBY! Just explain to her that you two shouldn't be fighting for the belt and I'm sure she'll ask Chairman Ozpin to switch her championship match to Robyn." 

"But you didn't see her! The way she glared at me last week, this isn't a joke! Also...what the heck was that part about this being 'a little personal'."

Blake sighed. "I saw that too," she said, "I don't know what Ruby meant by 'personal' but I figured this could happen. I just didn't expect Ruby to take it this far."

Weiss looked at Blake, confused. "What do you mean by that?" she asked, "You expected Ruby to act this way?"

"She's got the belt madness. Think about it; Yang was RWE Champion a while ago. I won the same belt a few months later. And now you're the current champ. Ruby is the only member of RWBY that's never won the belt. I mean, yes, this is Ruby we're talking about...but anyone would feel envious."

"Don't talk about my sister like that," Yang snapped, "Ruby is not that petty! I'm sure if the three of us just talk things over with her-"

"-Yang, we've had friends snap before when it comes to these championship matches. Remember when Winter Schnee used her Money in the Bank contract to steal the God of Darkness belt away from James Ironwood? Those two were thick as thieves and yet she got the madness as well."

"Okay, but that's Winter-"

"-and don't forget when Scarlet David allied with the White Fang and rigged his championship match with Jaune. Jaune Arc lost the Mighty Mistralian Championship after Ilia interfered in his match. Who could've suspected Scarlet would actually ally himself with the White Fang!?" 

Yang and Weiss were quiet. Although Winter and Scarlet were friends...they were starting to understand Blake's point. Even the best of people could be brought down when it came to the fight for the top belts. That thought scared them as they were starting to see the warning signs from Ruby. 

"Look," Yang said, trying to clear her head of bad thoughts, "Weiss, just talk to Ruby. Tell her that it's just a belt and that your friendship is more important than that. It's Ruby, she'll understand."

"And what if she doesn't," Weiss said, "I don't want to raise any unnecessary suspicions but...I just want to know what you two would have me do. Do I fight her?"

"If Ruby doesn't back off," Blake said with a grimace, "Then you'll have to meet her in the middle. Speaking as a former champion, you still have a belt to defend."

"You're basically asking me to go to war with Ruby!" 

"Think of it this way... _you're not the one who started the war._ "

Weiss frowned as she stared at Blake, taking in her cold words of advice. She then looked at her belt. For the first time, the belt didn't feel like an honor to hold. It felt like a curse. 

* * *

Setting: Backstage, interviewing room

Ruby Rose was by herself, getting ready to meet Weiss in the ring. She already knew what she was going to say, now she just had to say it to Weiss' face. Despite everything that was happening, Ruby had no regrets. 

_I want to be a world champion. I DESERVE to be world champion after everything I've done for RWBY and this company. If this is how I get it, then so be it._

As she moved around the room, Cinder Fall entered the room with a big smile on her face. Ruby sighed, not wanting to talk to anyone else at the moment. 

"Well, well, well," Cinder started, "If it isn't Miss I-want-to-be-a-world-champion-even-if-it-costs-me-my-friendship-with-Weiss, Ruby Rose."

"Shut up," Ruby snapped. She didn't need to hear this.

"Oh, I'm not here to start a fight. I'm actually here to say...I'm on your side." 

That caught Ruby's attention. Cinder Fall was never this friendly and if she was, it meant she had some kind of ulterior motive. Curious, she turned to Cinder and asked, "What do you mean?"

"I understand how you're feeling. I know what it's like to be hungry for the belt...and I know what it's like to always be so close to the prize. So many times in the past, I was close to winning either the RWE championship or the two God belts. And so many times, I've failed. It's kind of funny, really...I see a lot of myself in you-"

"-don't ever compare me to you."

"I don't mean to disrespect you, Ruby. I know we've fought in the past but...that was before. Now...I'm willing to call for a truce."

Ruby glared at Cinder. She still wasn't buying her friendly demeanor. _Where's the trick here, Ms. Fall?_

"Why?" Ruby asked bluntly, "What's in it for you?"

Cinder sighed. "You always think I have some hidden agenda-"

"-because you do."

"A wrestler can't just be friends with a fellow wrestler?"

"Not when you've betrayed so many people in the past. Now, what do you want, Cinder? Why do you want to be on my good side?"

Cinder smirked. She moved to the exit, then turned back to Ruby. "Why do I want to be friends with you, Ruby?" Cinder repeated, "Simple...I just want to see a fellow underdog finally win the top prize. That's all." 

On that note, Cinder left the room. Although Ruby wasn't convinced that Cinder truly wanted to be her friend, the woman's words stayed with her. _Fellow underdog, huh?_

/

/

Outside, Cinder was approached by Hazel Rainart, who was frowning at her. "Why were you talking to Ruby," Hazel demanded.

"That's none of your business," Cinder snapped.

"I'm making it my business, especially since both of you hate each other's guts. So what gives?"

At that, Cinder smiled. Hazel wasn't sure why she was smiling but it looked like she had some sort of plan going on. 

"Oh, we didn't talk about anything important," Cinder said, "I just wanted to tell her that I respect her decision for going after the RWE Championship, even if it was against her best friend."

"That's...awfully sweet of you. And out of character."

"No, no, I've always considered Ms. Rose a friend of mine. You should've seen her, Hazel, she was torn about challenging the Schnee girl. So, like a good friend... _I gave her a little push in the right direction._ "

Cinder smiled again. This time, Hazel picked up how Cinder said that last line. _Now that is diabolical. I'm impressed._

* * *

Setting: The ring

**Weiss' entrance theme: "Mirror, Mirror" - Jeff Williams, Casey Lee Williams**

**Ruby's entrance theme: "This Will be the Day" - Jeff Williams, Casey Lee Williams**

The crowd was cheering loudly as both Ruby and Weiss stared at each other. Neither of them wanted to make the first move, both worrying about what the other was going to say. 

_Oh, this is ridiculous! This is Ruby Rose we're talking about! I just have to confront her and we can both settle this once and for all._

Weiss, realizing that this conversation needed to happen regardless of how uncomfortable it was, stepped forward in order to start it. She lifted her microphone and said, "Ruby. I just want to say...I get what you're going through."

At that, Weiss saw Ruby raise an eyebrow, apparently confused at what she was trying to hint at.

"I get it," Weiss repeated, "I should've seen this coming. Blake pointed out that among the four of us, you're the only one who's never been a RWE Champion, a God of Light Champion, or a God of Darkness Champion. I should've known that you wanted to be a champion and that you were willing to step out of your comfort zone to do it. So yes, I get it, I get why you went after me. But I have a question; why didn't you go after Robyn Hill?"

Ruby didn't react to that. She simply just shrugged the question off, as if the answer should've been obvious. Weiss, though, didn't appreciate her nonchalant gesture. 

"Ruby, you're gonna have to explain this to me because I, and the rest of the RWE Universe, have no idea why you didn't just go for Hill. I get why you didn't choose the God of Darkness belt. You didn't want to fight your uncle, which makes sense. I wouldn't want to fight my siblings. Aside from my father, there's a line to be crossed when it comes to family, so I get why you wouldn't even consider your Uncle Qrow. But Robyn Hill was literally right there. You don't really know her and between her and I, it made more sense to go after her. Her belt is as good as mine! By going after me, you are putting everything between us in danger. It's not just our friendship when you think about it. Think about how Blake and Yang will react to us fighting! Or Team JNPR! Team SSSN! Pretty much all our friends! Is that what you want, Ruby? Is this what you're willing to sacrifice?" 

Once again, Ruby didn't react. She was taking in all of Weiss' words but it looked like she wasn't ready to respond.

Weiss, seeing Ruby's hesitation, continued. At this moment, she didn't care how long she talked, she was going to reach Ruby no matter what. "In case you haven't considered what you'd be sacrificing by going through with this, let me remind you where we came from. When we started out in this company, we were nobodies. The four of us had to be paired up in order to even stand a chance against the other wrestlers. Yes, RWBY is no longer together, but when we were, we ruled Monday Night Aura! Here's a refresher; remember when we held both tag team belts at the same time?"

The crowd cheered as Weiss went down this particular side of memory lane. The glory days of Team RWBY.

"I still think about it from time to time. On the same night, Extreme Rules...Blake and Yang won the Friday Night Dust tag team championship belts from Team Renora (Ren/Nora). Then, you and I won the Monday Night Aura tag team championship belts from the Terracotta Army (Saphron/Terra). That was unprecedented in RWE history, for a single wrestling stable to hold both tag team championship belts simultaneously. We were no longer considered weak, Team RWBY had finally made a name for ourselves! And yes, we did break up a while later. However, we didn't break up because we started hating each other, we broke up because we wanted more. Yang and Blake both wanted to be RWE Champions and they got their chance in the spotlight. And obviously, I got my chance later. So Ruby...once again, I get why you want your chance. All I ask is that you remember where we came from and what you'd be sacrificing if you still choose to go after me. So please, for me and the rest of the RWE Universe, explain to everyone why you didn't go for Robyn Hill. The God of Light belt is just as good. So tell me. We'd all love to hear."

The crowd cheered once more as Weiss took a step back to let Ruby respond. Ruby doesn't respond immediately; she stares out to the crowd, trying to gauge their response. For Weiss, she still wasn't sure what Ruby was going to say but she hoped that her words reached Ruby.

Ruby took a deep sigh then raised her mic. Weiss calmed her nerves, realizing that this was the moment of truth.

"Okay, Weiss," Ruby started, "That was a nice reminder of what we once were. I agree, I miss the days when it was just us four. But, as a reminder to you...that was the past. We were a great team but Team RWBY is no longer together. Now, we're all just players trying to be the top of this company, remember that."

Weiss noticed that there was a little booing from the crowd at the mention of RWBY being a thing of the past. She elected to ignore it in order to focus on what Ruby was saying.

"Alright...so, let me answer your question. You want to know why I didn't pick Robyn Hill? I mean...I get what all of you are saying! I get that it made more sense for me to go after the Happy Huntress! Like you said, her belt was just as good as yours and Uncle Qrow's. Plus, we're not family and she's not a friend so...why not? It'll be the same prestige and everything! But let me tell you this...prestige isn't everything now, is it?" 

Weiss frowned. _What does she mean by that?_

"You want to know why prestige isn't everything? Weiss...do you remember what this company is called? 'RWE'. We can pretend that all the top belts are the same...but let's face it, the Brother belts will never carry the same presence as the RWE belt. It literally has the company name! But once again, prestige isn't everything! Just because the RWE belt is better than the Brother belts doesn't mean the Brother belts are worthless! No, there has to be a bigger reason why I specifically want the RWE Championship. So...let me tell you."

_Where are you going with this, Ruby?_

"Let's rewind the clocks back once again. Team RWBY breaks up. Sad face. But then, Yang, immediately after going solo, gets her shot at the title. She wins it and we're all happy for her. But do you remember how she got her chance at the title? She had to win a tournament for the number one contender's position. And who else was in that bracket? Me. I got so close...but then I got sucker punched by Cardin Winchester and got booted out of the tournament. There goes my chance at the belt. However, as we all know, that wasn't the end of it. You see, Blake gets a shot at the belt a little while later. Now, how did Blake get that shot? She also fought for the number one contender's position. Do you remember how I lost that chance?"

Weiss grimaced as she remembered how it happened. Before Blake won a shot at the title, Ruby was given that chance. However, instead of it being a fair fight, former Monday Night Aura general manager Roman Torchwick had arranged a 1-vs-2 handicap match between Ruby and the Malachite twins. If she won, she would be up next for the belt. Despite all she did, the Malachites screwed her out of a victory. 

"Yeah, I remember," Weiss said.

"I just want to say, I'm not angry at Melanie and Miltia anymore," Ruby continued, "Roman's the one who set the whole thing up anyways. Thank Oum he was fired. Now, going back to the original topic, let's discuss...you. Let me ask you this, Weiss, how did you get your shot at the belt?"

Weiss frowned, not following Ruby's train of thought. "I had to beat Ren," she said, "I defeated him fair and square, so I got a championship match as a result."

"That's right, Weiss. And just like with Yang and Blake, I got screwed over again! I was the one who was supposed to fight Ren...but then, I got hurt and had to take a leave to heal! So, they gave my shot to you! Now look at you, you're the RWE Champion!" 

At that, Weiss started to not appreciate Ruby's tone. She was starting to sound bitter, angry even with her. The crowd noticed this as well and the booing from earlier started to gain some strength.

"Hey, I didn't steal your shot from you," Weiss snapped, "Ruby, you were out! Do you really think anyone would've turned down a chance for the belt!? If you were in my position, you would've done the same! If all of this is why you're making it 'personal', I'm warning you, don't you dare start with me on this path! You won't like the result." 

Ruby snickered at that. "Okay Weiss...you're right. You're absolutely right. I was injured so it's not right of me to think that anyone would've waited for me to return. The company still has to function, so, they needed someone to take my spot. You see Weiss...that's still not the reason why I chose you."

"So what is it then?!"

"Well...all that talk about Team RWBY? You know, I actually talked to Cinder Fall before this."

 _Huh, Cinder? Why are you talking to Cinder, Ruby?_ Weiss glared at Ruby for this, especially knowing Cinder's reputation.

"She mentioned something interesting to me," Ruby continued, "I'm the underdog. Despite being RWBY's team leader...I'm the least impressive member there. I haven't won a single world championship! Every time I go for the belt, either I lose, I get screwed over, or I get injured. And yet everyone else just keeps on winning. That should make me feel happy, right? I mean...you're my team, so I should feel happy that my teammates are winning! But ever since I won the Royal Rumble, you know what I've actually been feeling?"

"What?"

"I've realized that...now that I've finally gotten my shot....now that I'm just inches away from being a world champion...it's occurred to me that I _don't like being the underdog_. I was the team leader, I should've been the first to achieve outside success! What the hell am I doing, being the one who's always falling short! And when I really think about it...it makes me _angry_ that my teammates have succeeded where I failed."

That stunned Weiss. This conversation was taking a turn and going into a place that she didn't want. "What does that mean?" she asked.

"What I mean is...how the _hell_ did my _less-talented, less-charismatic, pathetic, weakling teammates somehow become world champions before I did!?_ "

And that's when the turn occurred. The whole crowd, which was initially mixed on how to respond to Ruby, were now fully booing her. Weiss' eyes widened when she realized that Ruby was just glaring at her now. Whatever warmth was in her eyes before was now gone, replaced with just bitter hatred. 

Before Weiss had a chance to react, Ruby hit her with a Swinging Scythe Kick from out of nowhere, knocking her down to the ground. The crowd booed even louder as Ruby circled Weiss, her eyes never leaving Weiss' prone body. 

Ruby left the ring and walked over to the commentators. Pushing Oobleck aside, she grabbed a magazine and a beer bottle. Ruby then returned to the ring just as Weiss was slowly starting to get back up.

Since their mics were down on the ground, the crowd couldn't exactly hear what either Weiss or Ruby were saying. From what could be picked up from the cameras, the crowd heard Ruby shout, "You, Blake, and Yang forgot who ran things back then! I gotta remind you who kept RWBY together for all those years!" 

Then suddenly... _ **SMACK.**_

Weiss yelped as Ruby slammed the beer bottle into her face, causing her to crash back down to the ring mat. If the crowd's booing was loud before, it was deafening now. Then, for the first time since this whole encounter began...Ruby began laughing. She seemed to be laughing in contempt of the crowd, which further enraged the audience.

Turning to face the camera, Ruby flipped through the magazine she got from the commentators and stopped on a full-spread about Team RWBY. Ruby Rose laughed once again as she tore the magazine into two pieces, removing herself from the other three members in the picture.

"You see these losers," Ruby said with a grin as she raised the torn up magazine to the camera, only showing the section with Blake, Yang, and Weiss. "They had their time! It's my time now! I'm going to get what I deserve!" 

Ruby then tossed that side of the magazine to the ground and stomped on it. As she did, she lifted the other side of the magazine to the camera and said, "I'm sorry, the old Ruby can't come to the phone right now. Why? Oh...because she's dead!" - Ruby dropped the other half of the magazine, then made the cameraman face her - "This is who you're gonna praise from now on. Not RWBY Ruby, not constantly-falling-short-Ruby...but future RWE Champion Ruby!" As if on cue, the crowd booed at the idea that she was going to take Weiss' title. 

Ruby walked over to Weiss. Leaning down so that Weiss could hear her, Ruby said, "Say goodbye to the RWE Championship belt, Weiss, because I'm coming to take it!" At that, Ruby exited the ring. As she did, the ringside staff all began tending to Weiss. Her forehead was slightly bleeding from the beer bottle strike but other than that, she was okay. Ruby could only laugh as she walked back up the steps to the Titantron. 

As for the rest of the RWE Universe, they could only watch in horror as Ruby had finally succumbed to the "belt madness". 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Loosely) based on: The WWE 
> 
> Full disclosure, I absolutely love wrestling. I've been a wrestling stan since high school. So it was only a matter of time until I did a chapter based on the WWE. Also, I wanted to start this universe off with a bang by having Ruby do a heel turn. One, I thought it'd be entertaining, and two, I noticed that I've been casting the characters in a role that suited them the most. For once, I wanted to take a character and "push them out of their comfort zone", so to speak. 
> 
> I plan on returning to this universe...when exactly, time will tell. I do love the idea of villain!Ruby so we'll see. 
> 
> Side note: If I were thinking about this in terms of the real WWE, Chairman Ozpin probably realized that Ruby's "hero" persona had gotten stale. So, he had her turn heel in order to give her some much needed momentum. Or a "push" in wrestling terms.


	18. Anime that Huntsmen and Huntresses Wouldn't Wanna Be In

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> While the girls are away, Jaune, Ren, Sun, Neptune, Scarlet, and Sage spend the day talking about their favorite anime...and why they wouldn't want to live in them.

CAST

  1. Jaune Arc as Leland 
  2. Lie Ren as Ben
  3. Sun Wukong as Mark 
  4. Neptune Vasilias as Dylan 
  5. Scarlet David as John 
  6. Sage Ayana as Desmond



* * *

Setting: Outside Beacon Academy, park area 

Time: Afternoon

It has been a few minutes since Jaune and Ren waved goodbye to Nora and Pyrrha, who had left to join Team RWBY on their "girls day out". Feeling that the boys would be bored without them, Nora had suggested that they hang out with Team SSSN. Specifically, Nora had told the two boys that, just like the girls needing their "girl time", they could do the same with Sun's all-male team. Jaune and Ren didn't mind...until they actually started hanging out. As the six boys sat around each other on the park's metal lawn swing, they realized that they didn't have a lot to talk about.

_Well...this is awkward. Come on, Jaune, think of something-_

As if he could hear Jaune's thoughts, Sun turned to the boys and said, "Bros, I got a question."

"What's on your mind?" Jaune replied. All the boys turned to Sun, curious as to what the man was thinking of. 

"If you can live in any anime world...what would it be?"

Immediately, Jaune's first thought was that the question was a bit silly. Sure, he watched his fair share of anime but he never really considered living in them (except "Food Wars" for the chance to eat some of the dishes made in the series). But seeing as how this was the only conversation starter for now, he decided to humor Sun. 

_Well..."My Hero Academia" would be pretty fun. "Yu-Gi-Oh" as well. "High School DxD"...uh, maybe not that one, RWBY, Nora, and Pyrrha might kill me if I chose that series. But still...those ladies...could be worth the risk. Huh, I actually don't know which anime I'd want to live in._

"That's actually a good ass question," Jaune said as he sat back in his seat, thinking over his options. 

"Sure is," Ren said. Jaune looked over to him, surprised that he was thinking this over as well. 

Sun, seeing his friends think things over, said, "Well, I know where I'd want to be. I would pick Naruto! And that's not a joke, I'm dead serious." 

At that, the boys started murmuring to themselves. Most of them were in agreement, especially Ren who told Sun that he liked that idea. Jaune didn't blame him; he was already the team's resident ninja, it only made sense that he'd want to live in a world of ninjas.

However, the more Jaune thought it over...the more he realized that he didn't like the idea of living in "Naruto". While it sounded cool on paper, as he thought about all the battles and massacres that happened in the series, the less appealing the idea sounded to him. 

"Hold on," Jaune said, "Are you being for real, Sun? Out of every anime...you chose Naruto?"

Team SSSN and Ren looked at him as if he was crazy. Sun almost looked like he was offended by Jaune trying to criticize his selection. Although the looks he was getting started to stress him out, Jaune didn't want to take back what he said. He just couldn't shake the feeling that Naruto was a bad pick. 

"What, it's not bad." Scarlet David said behind him. Jaune turned around and saw that he was folding his arms, disappointed in him right now.

"Yeah, what's wrong with Naruto!" Sun snapped back.

"Man guys, are you even hearing yourselves?" Jaune said to the whole team. He was hoping that at least one person would hear him out. And amazingly, one person did. 

"Yeah, Sun, I don't know about that one," Neptune said as he scratched the back of his head, nervous that he just went against his best friend. Sun's jaw dropped, surprised that Neptune was taking Jaune's side over his. 

"Dude, why?!" Sun asked.

"Naruto... _without plot armor?_ "

* * *

**Segment 1: Naruto**

In the Village Hidden in the Leaf, rookie ninjas Sun Wukong, Sage Ayana, and Jaune Arc were getting ready for their (supposedly) C-rank mission, given to them by Sixth Hokage Qrow Branwen (he had taken over the role after Fifth Hokage Glynda Goodwitch decided to step down). It was a run-of-the-mill, mundane mission that could be handled by most rookie teams. Still, Sage couldn't help but worry. He wasn't used to leaving the walls of the village.

"Hey, y'all sure nothing's going to happen?" Sage asked as he nervously looked around, thinking that a rogue ninja could pop out at them at any second. 

Sun, in response, just waved him off. "Bro, we told you already, it's a C-rank mission," he said as he was casually spinning his staff around, "Ain't nothing going to happen."

"Yeah bro, relax," Jaune said, "All we have to do is take the scroll to the village hidden in the dreams, which is literally just an hour away."

"At most, we're gonna see a bandit or two."

Sage's eyes widened at what Sun said. Bandit or not, he didn't want to think about coming across anyone outside the walls.

"What do you mean a bandit?" Sage asked.

Sun rolled his eyes, unfazed by the potential danger. "Bro, it's a bandit, we're ninjas," he said, sounding smug, "We can beat a bandit. Plus we got Ren-sensei with us, he's like the third-ranking jonin in the whole village. It's gonna be alright! Stop playing...golly, being all scared." 

_Whooosh!_

Just then, Lie Ren teleported behind his team. With the scroll at hand, he walked over to the main gate with his team not too far behind.

"Are you guys ready?" Ren asked.

"Yes sir," Jaune, Sun, and Sage responded back. 

"Alright, let's go. Remember to keep your guards up." Ren walked off, looking as if he was ready to get into a fight. Although he was just telling his team to be ready for a potential danger, Sage still couldn't help but worry.

_What does he mean 'keep our guards up'? Does he know something we don't know!?_

"'Keep our guard up'?" Sage whispered to Sun, "This doesn't sound safe to me-"

"-dude, it's a C-rank mission," Sun growled back, "Damn, come on already!" 

Sage could only sigh in frustration as he joined Sun, Jaune, and Ren in leaving the village. 

/

/

Half an hour later

/

/

"Wait! Somebody's near!"

Sage, Jaune, and Sun stopped running as soon as they heard Ren call out to them. Knowing just how serious Ren was taking any possible threat to this mission, all of them turned to him to see what he had come across.

"What's going on, Ren?" Jaune asked as he looked around the forest.

Ren simply pointed ahead of them. "There," he said with a frown. Immediately, Jaune, Sun, and Sage saw what the danger was.

Two men in robes that eerily reminded them of the Akatsuki threat from years ago. Both of the strangers had katanas and they were clearly unhappy with the four Konoha ninjas entering their territory. 

"Sensei?" Jaune asked, wondering what was going on.

Ren simply held his hand out to his team, urging them to stay back. "Don't worry," he said, "We'll handle them quickly."

Sun, on the other hand, didn't seem worried at all. "Don't worry bro," he whispered directly to Sage, "It's probably just some bandits bro, I'm sure." 

Sage wasn't convinced by any of Sun's words. 

"Who are you?" Ren asked the two men, "And you're not getting the scroll!"

Much to the Konoha ninjas' surprise, the two strangers (who we can now see are Neptune Vasilias and Scarlet David) laughed at the idea of them wanting the scroll. "We're not after the scroll," Neptune said as he brandished his katana, "And we're not just bandits." 

Sun's face dropped, realizing that Neptune had heard him call him a bandit. 

"We're the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist," Scarlet David then said, smirking at the four Konoha ninjas, "It's just an unlucky day for you guys."

Ren couldn't believe what he was hearing. The Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, one of the most infamous rogue ninja groups in the world. Rumors circulated about them being the second coming of the Akatsuki and that they wanted to harvest the power of the Salem Clan. 

"Damn it...the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist," Ren muttered to himself, wondering how he could have gotten so unlucky on this easy mission. His change in demeanor was not lost on his team, who all started to worry.

"Oh, well, maybe they're not bandits, I don't know," Sun quickly said, wanting to save face from earlier. Sage looked at him, feeling betrayed after being reassured that nothing would happen on this mission.

"What do you mean?!" Sage angrily snapped at Sun.

"Well, they said they're the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist so...not bandits-"

"-what? What is that?"

"I don't know! Stop talking and pay attention!"

"But you said this was a C-rank mission!" 

"It is a C-rank, fool, but I don't know what's going on now! So let's see what's gonna happen!"

"I swear to god, Sun, this is some bullshit."

"Man, don't do that to me."

Suddenly, Neptune Vasilias charged forward. Jaune, Sun, and Sage instinctively stepped back while Ren ran forward to meet Neptune. "Stay back!" Ren shouted to his team. Neptune attempted to slice Ren with his katana but, due to his superior speed, Ren was able to dodge the strikes. He then quickly turned and began doing a hand sign for his signature jutsu.

"Katon! Goukakyuu-"

_SVISH!_

Lie Ren screamed in pain as Scarlet David appeared behind him and slashed him on the back. Before Ren could turn around and counter, Neptune ran forward and ran his katana right through him. Ren collapsed to the ground, having been killed instantly by Neptune's strike.

Neptune, looking back at Ren's corpse, could only shrug. _Huh...that seemed a bit...too easy. Looks like these Leaf ninjas are letting anyone become a jonin nowadays._

Jaune, Sun, and Sage could only shriek in horror at the sight of their dead master. "SENSEI!" they all screamed simultaneously. Neptune and Scarlet laughed at the three rookie ninjas, who now realized the magnitude of the situation.

"SUN, WHAT THE FUCK!" Jaune shouted at his once-arrogant teammate, "I THOUGHT YOU SAID REN WAS A TOP-THREE JONIN!"

"ASSHOLE, I THOUGHT HE WAS A TOP-THREE JONIN!" Sun shouted back at Jaune, "THEY SAID THAT AT THE VILLAGE-"

"-WHO SAID IT?!"

"Uh...uh...THE VILLAGE!"

"Man, are you just listening in on this shit?!"

"YOU'RE IN THE SAME VILLAGE AS ME, WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?!"

"YOU SHOULD KNOW THIS SHIT, WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT!? So what are we gonna do, man, you're the number one rookie!" 

Sun's face dropped. He looked like he couldn't believe what Jaune had just shouted at him. "Number one rookie?" Sun said in complete disbelief, "Are y'all fucking serious?!"

"But you are!" Sage pointed out. Sun, in response, tried to hit Sage with his staff.

"Yo, it's the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, it obviously doesn't matter you fuckers!" Sun shouted at both Jaune and Sage. Jaune groaned in frustration while Sage, who was pacing around the forest in complete panic, could only think about one thing; **this was supposed to be a goddamn C-rank mission.**

"Man, this was supposed to be a C-rank mission!" Sage shouted at Sun, "Just get in and get out, what the fuck happened?!"

Sun now looked like he wanted to strangled Sage on the spot. "Shut. The. Fuck. Up. With that C-rank mission shit!" Sun shouted back.

"But it is! I mean, I thought it was!"

"Man, I don't even know-oh!" Sun stopped and froze in fear. Jaune looked back at him, confused.

"What?" he asked. As he looked behind him, Neptune Vasilias and Scarlet David brought their swords down. He didn't see them coming. 

/

/

Jaune Arc...dead. Lie Ren...dead. With no other options, Sun Wukong and Sage Ayana took off, trying to make it back to the village. After a couple of minutes from running, Sun and Sage stopped to catch their breath. They turned around to see if their foes were nearby. Much to their dismay, Neptune and Scarlet weren't too far off. They were even taking their time.

"We can't keep running, they right there," Sun said to Sage. Sage looked back at him, confused.

"What are you going on about," Sage snapped back, "Yes we can!" 

"We can't outrun them! We can't outrun them!"

"Huh, what do you mean, we can't just give up now-"

"-aye look man, look here man...I'm gonna go out like a ninja."

"HUH?"

"I'm gonna go out like a ninja! It is what it is, Sage!" 

"THAT DOESN'T MAKE ANY SENSE!"

"TELL BLAKE I LOVE HER. ALSO, TELL EVERYONE I WENT OUT IN A BLAZE OF GLORY."

At that, Sun turned to his foes and began the hand signs for his signature jutsu. He managed to get one sign down...just in time for Neptune to come in and slice him in half with his katana. Sun's body fell unceremoniously to the ground. 

Sage started backing up, realizing he was next. As he did, he began to do the one thing he could think of at the moment...plead for his life. "Oh shit man. Please! Please don't kill me! Hey, look, I'll join you! I'll tell you the secrets of the leaf village! But just, please don't kill me, please!"

* * *

"You know what...on second thought...maybe Naruto...you know, maybe I don't want to be there." Sun shook his head, internally cringing at how short someone's lifespan was on that show.

After hearing Neptune and Jaune's detailed breakdown of how horrible it would be to live in the "Naruto" world, the other four men couldn't help but agree with them. Even Sun, who thought for sure that "Naruto" would be an amazing choice, had to backtrack on his words. 

"You see what I'm saying, bro," Jaune said, "You run across the wrong people, you get knocked off...easy."

Sun sighed, reluctantly agreeing. "Yeah, that's true," he said, "I didn't even think of that." 

With "Naruto" off the list, Lie Ren began thinking about his other options. 

_Hmm...well, "Bleach" might be cool, but I could do without the Hollows. "Sword Art Online"...maybe, but I don't want to risk getting stuck in the game. "High School DxD"...maybe, although Nora might kill me if I admitted to wanting to live in that show. Let's see..._

"Ah, I got it," Ren said, catching the group's attention.

"Alright, what you got?" Sun asked.

"I would do One Punch Man." _It makes sense...as long as you don't cross his path, you're golden. What's the worst that could happen?_

Among the group, it looked like Sun was on the same wavelength as Ren. "Hmm...One Punch Man," Sun said, "That might be a good one." 

* * *

**Segment 2: One Punch Man**

"I'M THE HARDEST FIGHTER IN THE WORLD! CAN'T NOBODY BEAT ME! MAN, THAT'S ON MY LIFE, THAT'S ON MY MAMA, THAT'S ON ME! MAN, SOMEBODY TRY ME! TRY ME IF YOU WANT! MAN, NOT ONE OF Y'ALL CAN BEAT ME!"

Neptune, Ren, Scarlet, and Jaune could only back away as Sage Ayana yelled at all of them, trying to provoke them into a fight. It's not like they couldn't fight...they just didn't want to deal with Sage. They knew his reputation as one of the most vicious fighters from...wherever he hailed from.

"MAN Y'ALL BRING SOMEBODY RIGHT NOW!" Sage shouted, continuing his unhinged rant, "MAN, I DARE ONE OF Y'ALL TO TRY ME! WHO'S GONNA TRY ME?!"

As Sage continued his rant, a mysterious man emerged from the forest and joined Neptune, Ren, Scarlet, and Jaune. This man (who suspiciously looked like Sun Wukong) was dressed in a yellow, one-piece jumpsuit with a white cape and red gloves. None of them knew who this mysterious man was, so they chose to ignore him. 

Not wanting to get involved in a fight, Jaune and Scarlet attempted to walk away.

"Bro, he's been trying people all day," Jaune whispered.

"Yeah, it's getting quite annoying," Scarlet whispered back. Seeing their lips move, Sage pointed at the two, getting them to stop.

"HEY!" Sage shouted, "YOU TWO TALKING SHIT?!"

Jaune and Scarlet raised their hands in surrender. "Nah, we're good," Jaune said, trying to defuse the situation.

"Same here, we're good," Scarlet said.

Sage nodded his head, happy to hear that. "THAT'S WHAT I THOUGHT! "

Jaune just sighed as he brought his hands down. "You see what I'm saying?" Jaune whispered to Scarlet.

"Yeah, he's straight up tripping," Scarlet whispered back. The two men then walked away, hoping to finally get away from this area. Sage ignored them and continued with his wild rant.

"MAN, COME ON! WHO'S GONNA TRY ME!? MAN, I'LL WHOOP ANY FUCKER AROUND HERE, COME ON-"

_BOOM!_

Everyone in the area felt the shockwaves emitted from Sun Wukong's punch to Sage Ayana. Sage, who didn't see it coming, was knocked out instantly. Either that or he was killed on impact. 

Neptune, Ren, Scarlet, and Jaune began to cheer for this mysterious, yellow-jumpsuit-wearing stranger. They may not know who he was but because he stopped Sage's annoying rants, they couldn't help but love him.

Sun Wukong, who was just happy to help, waved back at the four men. 

* * *

"Hmm...I mean, I guess One Punch Man ain't that bad." Jaune nodded his head at Ren, happy at his teammate's decision. 

"That's what I'm saying, I told you," Ren said, happy that Jaune agreed with him. This got the rest of Team SSSN to start talking, wondering if Ren had found the right answer to Sun's question. 

"Well...as long as you're not a villain, though," Jaune added, causing Ren to frown. Upon hearing this, a thought formed in Sun's head. Something that he didn't consider during Ren's initial explanation.

"Wait a minute," Sun said, "But what if you got to fight One Punch Man for some random reason?"

Ren cringed at that. _Well...I mean...shit, I should've thought about that first._

* * *

"So I heard you were talking about Nora behind her back!" Ren shouted as he approached One Punch Man/Sun Wukong. Jaune Arc and Sage Ayana cheered the ninja on while Sun Wukong stood perfectly still, his face in a permanent half-smile. The three men weren't even sure if Sun was registering this confrontation. 

As Ren continued to taunt Sun about him possibly badmouthing Nora, he began to wonder if this was a smart move. _Hang on...I've seen this man knock out guys more powerful than me with one punch. Who am I to him-_

Ren's train of thought was instantly derailed when he was knocked out cold by Sun. He didn't even see the punch coming. Jaune and Sage immediately stopped cheering, now concerned about their friend's well-being. 

"Uh...Ren, you okay?" Sage asked. Before he could lean down to check on him, Sun casually walked over and delivered another knock-out punch. Sage was unconscious before he even hit the ground.

Jaune, now alone with this madman, could only look at the One Punch Man in horror. "HE ACTUALLY GOT THEM BITCHES!"

* * *

"Oh wait, never mind, I take that back. Not One Punch Man!" The group groaned as Ren immediately took back his suggestion.

"You don't wanna be there, he literally takes no L's, bro," Jaune said, shaking his head at the idea of being knocked out by one punch. 

"Yeah, one man knocking everybody out?" Sun chimed in, "Nah, you can't have that. Like think about it...what if he hollers at your girl?" All the boys cringed at this. Sun didn't want to think about Blake Belladonna being taken by One Punch Man. Same with Ren, although he was thinking of Nora. Then there was Neptune thinking about Weiss, and Jaune who was thinking about...also Weiss. 

Although a part of him was also considering Pyrrha Nikos. 

As the boys debated about whether they would stand up to One Punch Man if he made a move on any of their respective crushes/girlfriends, all of them realized that they were now back to square one with Sun's question. With two options out, Sage was tempted to mention something simple like "Food Wars" or "Science Fell in Love, So I Tried to Prove It" but his gut was telling him that the group wanted something more. Picking a slice-of-life anime, even if the writing was amazing, felt like a cop-out since there's usually nothing out-of-the-ordinary or spectacular in those shows. 

_Hmm...let me think. Maybe not a battle anime since "Naruto" and "One Punch Man" were bad options. "Berserk"...oh hell nah, why am I even considering that? "Neon Genesis Evangelion"....eh, I could do without the confusion. "High School DxD"...now that's a tempting pick. Wait, no, I know where I'd wanna live. Why didn't I mention this before!?_

"Hey guys," Sage said, stopping the group's One Punch Man debate, "I'd be in Doctor Stone!"

"Doctor Stone?!" All the other boys said this at the same time, wondering if Sage was onto something or if he had lost his mind.

* * *

**Segment 3: Dr. Stone**

5738 A.D.. It has been 3,700 years since every human and faunus on Remnant had been petrified by a mysterious ray of light. It was a bizarre act of god that no one could have predicted.

Through sheer luck, Jaune, Sage, and Sun were able to escape their rock prisons after being exposed to nitric acid that had seeped out from bat guano. Now free, the three men stepped out into the forest, realizing that they now had to find a way to survive in this new world.

"So...what now?" Sun asked. Jaune and Sage shrugged at him, not sure what to say.

"What do you mean what?" Sage asked back.

"What are we gonna eat?"

Jaune Arc, realizing he was starving, turned to Sage. "Um...bro, can you hunt?"

In response, Sage scratched the back of his head, realizing his skills were lacking in this particular situation. "No, I can't hunt. Man, I thought you could hunt! Can you hunt?"

"You know I ain't never said that shit," Jaune snapped back as he looked around, trying to figure out a solution to this problem. 

Sun, beginning to worry, blurted out, "So...we're just gonna die then?"

At first, Jaune and Sage tried to answer back. However, when they realized their chances of survival were low due to none of them knowing how to hunt, they decided not to say anything. 

Jaune, wanting to change the subject, pointed to everyone's feet. "Hey, quick question. If we just emerged from the rocks, how do we all have on sandals?" This didn't work since Sage and Sun just shrugged, not really wanting to question that plot hole right now. 

"Y'all know how to start a fire at least?" Sun asked. Once again, Sage and Jaune shrugged.

"I don't know how to start a fire," Jaune said. 

"Yeah, me neither," Sage added. 

"You can't fish?" Jaune asked this directly to Sun, who just shook his head. At this point, he looked disappointed in himself.

"Can't do no wildlife activities, bro," Sun said, his tone depressed. 

Jaune, realizing he was going nowhere with Sun, turned to Sage. "Can you fish?" 

"No." 

Sun sighed, accepting his fate. "We're just gonna die then." He took a seat on the ground and decided to wait until the inevitable happened. Jaune and Sage followed suit.

* * *

"Dang...okay, maybe I was tripping." The guys all muttered in agreement as Sage took back his suggestion of "Dr. Stone". While the idea of rebuilding civilization from science sounded like fun, it quickly soured when all six boys realized they were nowhere near as smart as Senku Ishigami. 

"Yeah, I mean, if you don't have a friend like Senku with you, you're really done," Jaune added. The boys agreed with that as well. 

"Dr. Stone was never it," Sun chimed in, "No scrolls, no technology...okay, maybe no scrolls wouldn't be too bad, but no technology? Not for me."

"Your chances at surviving would just plummet," Ren grimly said.

"Exactly...you'd be living in...I don't know, prehistoric times or something." The boys chuckled at this as they went back to trying to figure out which anime world would be great to live in. 

Just then, Scarlet David decided this was his moment to shine. _So, what can be better than Dr. Stone? Only one of the coolest animes around, one of the biggest hits in the past few years!_

"Alright guys, what about Attack on Titan?" Scarlet asked, "You know what I'm saying? That'd be kind of cool!" He expected the whole group to agree with him. However, he got the complete opposite reaction. As soon as "Attack on Titan" was mentioned, every single person aside from Scarlet began shaking their heads, not wanting to even consider that as a viable option.

Jaune turned to David, his face in a deep frown. "YOU CHOSE ATTACK ON TITAN?!" he said to David in complete disbelief.

"Oh come on, it'd be fun! You'd be like Levi, flying around the city on your omni-directional mobility gear-"

"-BRO, YOU'RE NOT GONNA BE LEVI!" Sun shouted, breaking Scarlet David out of the fantasy he was playing in his head. 

Before Scarlet could argue with the boys, Jaune raised his hand to get the group to listen to him. "Wait, wait, wait," he said, "I just want to say...out of all the anime out there, Attack on Titan might really be the absolute WORST option you could've gone with."

"Exactly!" Neptune shouted in agreement.

"Man, you'd have to be an idiot if you want to live there," Ren followed up, "That or have a death wish."

Scarlet David sighed and held his hands up in surrender. He heard enough. 

"Anyway," Jaune said, trying to course correct this conversation, "I got a good one."

"What?" Sun asked. 

_Well, I'm glad you asked because I was thinking about this when we first started. Heck, it was the first anime I thought of!_

"My Hero Academia," Jaune said. At that, the boys began murmuring to themselves, apparently liking the idea of 'My Hero'. 

That is, everyone except for Sun. 

"Come on, you got to admit that it'd be cool to live in MHA," Jaune continued, "Everybody gets powers, you fight supervillains...it sounds pretty fun!"

"But a lot of people got trash quirks in My Hero," Sun dully said. 

* * *

**Segment 4: My Hero Academia**

"I need a hero!"

Lie Ren grunted in frustration as he realized the door to his car was locked with the keys still inside. As if on cue, three superheroes arrived on the scene. There was Sun Wukong, who had the symbol of a battery on his chest, Jaune Arc, who had the bullseye symbol, and Sage Ayana, who didn't have any symbols but still dressed the part to fit with his teammates. 

"What do you need, the pro heroes are here!" Sun proudly stated. Although he was grateful for the help, Ren couldn't help but look at these heroes and wonder if they could actually assist him. Something seemed...off about all of them. 

"Wait, wait," Ren said, "What are your powers? Because y'all look kinda bootleg."

Sun was the first to step up. "My quirk's name is Charge," he said as if it was common knowledge, "I can charge any battery. I can charge the battery of a car. I can charge the battery of a scroll. Look, check my scroll. I know it's at 100%, I don't even have to look."

Sun took out his scroll and showed it to Ren. Ren was amazed at first...until he saw that the battery was clearly not at 100%.

"Wait, but that says 94," Ren pointed out. 

"Huh, 94?" Sun turned his scroll around and groaned when he saw that Ren was right. Not wanting to look bad, he gave the phone a quick charge, then turned it back to Ren. "How about now?"

"Alright, that's 100. Um...okay, that's uh...cool, I guess?"

"No, you know it's cool! Don't say you guess."

"Okay, whatever. How about you, what do you do?" Ren pointed to Jaune Arc, who proudly stepped forward to present his quirk.

"My quirk's name is Bullseye," he said, "I can put a bullseye on anything, no matter what it is!"

Ren nodded his head at that. While not helpful to his situation at all, it did sound fairly impressive. "Okay, that's cool. That sounds like a good power-"

"-not really, it doesn't increase my chance of hitting anything, it's just a bullseye there."

Ren almost facepalmed when he saw Jaune ruin his own credibility. Turning to the last hero, he said, "Okay, what do you do?" Inside, he prayed it was either something good or at least something helpful to his situation. 

Realizing he was up, Sage said, "Oh I can see into the future."

"Oh, wow, an actual good power! Wait, tell me now, are you serious?"

"Yeah...but only like, 0.3 to 0.5 seconds though."

Ren's face dropped. _And just like that...he's lame like the other two._ "So you can only see half a second into the future. That's it?"

"...yeah."

"Wait, so, my keys are stuck in my car, how can any of you help me!?"

Sun, Jaune, and Sage all looked at each other, unsure how to respond. Although their hearts were in the right place, they just didn't know how to help him out.

"Well," Sun started, "I could charge it?"

"Um," Jaune said, unsure where he was going with this train of thought, "I could put a target on it? Then maybe somebody could see it from far away."

"That doesn't help me at all," Ren dully said. 

Sage just shrugged, giving up completely. "We're not going to help you in 0.5 seconds so I don't know," he said. 

"Well...you want me to call Papa Lock?" Sun suggested, "My scroll's on 100%."

 _I could do that with my own scroll-ah, never mind._ "Yeah, sure, go ahead," Ren said with a sigh. 

"We'll pay for it as well," Jaune added, trying to save face.

"No, YOU'LL pay for it," Sun snapped back as he called Papa Lock.

Before Jaune could argue back, Sage pointed out to him that he saw him paying for the service in the next half-second. 

/

/

"Yo what's up, what's up-" _BLAM!_

Scarlet David hit the ground hard after Neptune's punch connected with his face. What were the two fighting over? It wasn't clear to either man, although Scarlet did remember being mad at Neptune for some reason. 

"Help!" Scarlet pleaded as Neptune circled him, "I need a hero, help me!" 

As if on cue, Sun, Jaune, and Sage entered the area, ready to assist. 

"What's going on!" Jaune shouted, causing Neptune to back away, "Pro heroes are here!"

"That guy is beating me up!"

Immediately, Neptune started backing away. "Yo, he swung first!" he shouted, pointing at Scarlet as he did. 

"Well...y'all need to stop," Sun said, sternly, "Because the pro heroes are here."

"Uh...sorry to ask this but...what are your powers? I don't think I recognize any of you." Sun, Jaune, and Sage glared at Neptune, thinking to themselves that this situation felt a little too familiar.

"My quirk is called Charge," Sun said, "I can charge any battery. Even car batteries! And even scroll batteries. Watch this...my phone is at 100%, I don't even have to look." Once again, Sun held his scroll up to show Neptune. 

"Dude, that's on 94%."

 _Not again!_ Sun groaned as he looked back to his scroll. After giving it a quick charge, he showed it back to Neptune. 

"Okay, it's at 100 now," Neptune said.

"Yeah...yeah, that's right," Sun said, trying to save face, "That's what I do!"

Sun stepped back and Sage stepped up to present his powers. With a more confident tone than last time, he said, "And mine is time! I can see 0.3 to 0.5 seconds into the future!"

At this point, Neptune started to look unimpressed in these supposed pro-heroes. He folded his arms and, looking at Sage, said, "Okay...so you can't do anything either." Instantly, Sage's initial confidence was destroyed and his face dropped. 

"No...no, no, not really." Sage stepped back, wanting to find a place to hide.

With his turn up, Jaune Arc stepped up. Neptune rolled his eyes, not eager to be let down once again. "My quick is Bullseye," Jaune said, "I can put a target on anything, no matter what it is!"

That caught Neptune and Scarlet's interest. Neptune started worrying that this man could beat him up by simply throwing things at him; after all, it sounded like he had the power of perfect aim. Scarlet was thinking the same thing, but he started feeling relieved. 

"Oh, well, that's not bad," Scarlet said to Jaune, "You could probably throw something at him, right?"

Scarlet's face dropped when he saw Jaune nodding his head. "Uh, no, it doesn't work that way," Jaune sheepishly said, "I have no advantages over anybody, it's just a target there."

"So y'all can't do nothing," Neptune snapped, frustrated that these three just wasted his time.

"Well...not in this situation," Sun tried to reason.

"Well...whatever, I'm just gonna keep fighting then."

Sage nodded his head at that. "Oh yeah, he's not gonna stop," he said to the other two pro heroes, "I can see it." Realizing that Neptune and Scarlet were going to go back to fighting in the next 0.3 to 0.5 seconds, Sun and Jaune nodded their heads and decided to call it a day. It's not like they could do anything to stop it anyways.

"Well, we did what we could," Jaune said.

"Right, let's go," Sun said as he turned to leave. Sage and Jaune followed suit.

Scarlet immediately went back into fighting mode as he and Neptune started to square up again. He couldn't believe it; a group of heroes actually came to his aid when he asked for it...and they didn't do anything!

"Man, what, bro, help me!" Scarlet pleaded, "Call someone else or something! Bro, I can't fight this asshole, bro-"

 _BLAM!_ At that, Neptune knocked Scarlet out. 

* * *

"I'm glad you said all of that because I didn't even think about that," Jaune said after Sun wrapped up his 'My Hero Academia' breakdown, "A lot of characters in My Hero Academia are trash." The boys all started muttering their agreements while Jaune sat back in his seat, a little disappointed. He thought for sure that he got the perfect answer. 

"There's too many, bro," Sun continued, "I mean, doesn't Deku's mom only have the power to lift a remote or something? Or just small objects in general?" The boys all nodded at that. 

"True," Jaune said, "You could be either All Might...or you could be just trash."

"Exactly! That's the scale; All Might, then trash. Although Lemillion would be at least somewhere near the middle. But those are the rare cases." The boys agreed with that as well. 

As the boys continued their debate over the questionable power scaling and distribution in "My Hero", Neptune was lost in thought when he realized he was the last to go. Everyone else presented an idea, although all of them were shot down. Because of that, he thought long and hard about which anime world he'd be fine living in.

_Hmm...maybe "Avatar the Last Airbender" could be cool-wait, no, that's an Atlesian show. Atlesian shows aren't anime, they need to come from Mistral. "Akame Ga Kill" would be awesome, I guess-wait, no, Esdeath would cut my head off without hesitation. Argh, why is this so difficult! Hmm...maybe "High School DxD"? I mean...them ladies though. No, no...I can't say that here, everyone would look at me funny. Hmm...there's gotta be an anime I can present-wait, I got it!_

"Aye guys, hear me out," Neptune said, "What about Parasyte? That'd be pretty wild!"

As soon as the guys heard Neptune's suggestion, they all stopped debating MHA...and started looking at Neptune as if he had gone insane. 

* * *

** Segment 5: Parasyte **

Sun and Neptune were on their way home after a good game of basketball. Both now just wanted to relax and play some video games to pass the time. "Hey bro," Sun said, "You know when we get back home, I'm first up on the PS5." Neptune frowned at this as he wanted to go first.

"Man, you get first on the PS5 every single time!" Neptune whined.

"I call first every single time!" 

"Well, but, Jaune is my cousin, so I should get it first." Jaune Arc was the one who bought the PS5. Sun, hearing what his friend just said, glared back at him. Neptune chuckled, unable to maintain a straight face.

"Bro...you're not Jaune Arc's cousin. What the fuck you talking about?"

"Yeah, yeah, that's my bad." 

"Damn, stop playing around already. You're tripping, bro-"

"-yo, yo, yo, what's that?"

Sun stopped when Neptune pointed to something up ahead on the path. A mysterious stranger (who looked suspiciously like Sage Ayana) was standing in the middle of the path. He wasn't doing anything...just blankly staring off into the distance. Immediately, Sun and Neptune wanted to turn around and walk away. They've seen this kind of scenario in horror movies before. 

"He's just...stopped right there?" Neptune said nervously.

"That's some weird shit, I ain't gonna lie," Sun replied back.

"Bro...what's he doing?" 

"Well...he's not doing anything so...let's just try walking around him?"

"Yeah, I guess."

Sun and Neptune slowly moved forward, keeping their eyes on Sage the whole time to see if he would make a move. As they got closer, they couldn't help but notice Sage's blank stare. It was unnerving how they couldn't read his expressions. Out of fright, they stopped moving once again.

"Wait, hold on, hold on, hold on-" "-yeah, he's tripping bro." 

Neptune turned to Sun, hoping he had some plan. "What you thinking?" he said. 

"Uh...I don't know, what are you thinking?" Sun answered back. 

"You wanna just turn around, bro?"

At that, Sun quickly looked back at Sage, then to Neptune. Although he was still scared, he suddenly remembered something. _Hang on...I'm an expert martial artist! Both Neptune and I are trained huntsmen! What are we doing freaking out?_

"Dude, bro, one guy ain't gonna scare us! There's two of us!"

Neptune, although he was still nervous, began to feel more confident with Sun's declaration. "Yeah...yeah, you're right!"

Turning to Sage, Sun stepped forward. "Aye, you got a problem?" he yelled out. 

No response. It wasn't even clear if Sage registered what Sun just said. But then, that's when he made his move. Just as Neptune suggested to Sun that they should just keep moving, that was when Sage...did it.

Much to Sun and Neptune's horror, Sage's head had _split_ open, right down the middle. Both halves of his head then started stretching out, almost resembling a pair of noodles. If this were a Grimm, it was a type of Grimm they had never seen before. 

Suddenly, one of Sage's noodle heads shot forward. Neptune and Sun didn't have time to react. In one clean swoop, the noodle head went for Neptune and cut his head right off. 

"OH SHIT!" Sun shouted. He then took off in the opposite direction, screaming for help. He still didn't fully comprehend what just happened but at that moment, he just wanted to live. 

* * *

"Nah, never mind," Neptune sheepishly said. No one had actually debunked his pick of "Parasyte", he was the one who pointed out that it was a terrible pick. He forgot that no one was really having fun on that show. "I must've remembered that show completely differently," he continued. 

"Yeah, you must have," Sun said, still surprised his friend would even consider that show, "Dude, even the main character wasn't having a good time."

"Yeah, yeah, point made."

"Well, I don't know what you was doing...but honestly, everyone here has picked some pretty trash shows! I mean, not trash as in they suck, but trash as in no reasonable person would want to live in that world."

The boys all muttered in agreement. Although no one came up with a solid answer for Sun's initial question, at this point, none of them cared. They were more concerned about getting something to eat after debating for what felt like an hour. As soon as Jaune mentioned that he was in the mood for tacos, all six boys stood up and made their way to the food trucks. The debate would have to be settled some other time. 

/

/

/

/

/

Setting: Ozpin's office, Beacon Academy

"Okay, which anime world would you want to live in?" Ozpin asked.

It didn't take Qrow Branwen, James Ironwood, and Taiyang Xiao Long that long to answer. At the same time, all three men answered, "High School DxD."

Glynda Goodwitch facepalmed (her answer was "Food Wars") while Winter Schnee couldn't help but be disappointed in the general's response. She'd expected this from Qrow and Taiyang, but not from Ironwood.

At the same time though...Winter was going to say either "Ouran High School Host Club" or "Fushigi Yuugi" so she opted to not say anything to avoid looking like a hypocrite for criticizing their selection of a harem anime. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Based on: RDCWorld1's "Anime People Wouldn't Wanna Be In" (featuring parodies of: Naruto, One Punch Man, Dr. Stone, My Hero Academia, and Parasyte) 
> 
> Shout-out to RDCWorld1, one of my favorite Youtube channels. Check them out, all their content is amazing.


	19. Preview to "Grimms" (first full-length movie-to-RWBY adaptation)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summer Rose is the sole survivor of a towing crew that was sent to investigate a distress beacon from LV-426, an Atlesian colony in the Solitas tundra. She claims that her team was destroyed by a "grim-looking" monster but, with no evidence to back her statements, she's turned away by her employers while another group is allowed to establish a settlement in the same area. 
> 
> When all contact to the new colony is lost, Summer is brought back to help in the investigation. This time, with a team of Atlesian marines, Summer returns to the source of her nightmares to hopefully put an end to them once and for all. 
> 
> However, there was only one Grimm the first time. Unbeknownst to Summer and the marines...they're walking right into the nest...

** CAST **

  1. Summer Rose as Ellen Ripley
  2. Qrow Branwen as Cpl. Dwayne Hicks 
  3. Mercury Black as Carter Burke
  4. Penny Polendina as Bishop
  5. Blake Belladonna as Rebecca "Newt" Jorden 
  6. Cardin Winchester as Pvt. Hudson
  7. Winter Schnee as Pvt. Vasquez
  8. Clover Ebi as Pvt. Drake 
  9. May Marigold as Pvt. Frost
  10. Vine Zeki as Pvt. Spunkmeyer
  11. Marrow Amin as Pvt. Crowe
  12. Elm Ederne as Pvt. Wierzbowski 
  13. Joanna Greenleaf as Cpl. Dietrich
  14. Harriet Bree as Cpl. Ferro 
  15. James Ironwood as Sgt. Apone 
  16. Caroline Cordovin as Lt. Gorman 
  17. Jacques Schnee as Paul van Leuwen (EDIT: Re-casted, original character was Robyn Hill)
  18. Ghira Belladonna as Russ Jorden
  19. Kali Belladonna as Anne Jorden 
  20. Peter Port as Al Simpson 
  21. Zwei as Jonesy 
  22. The Grimm as the Xenomorphs 



** UNSEEN CAST **

  1. Ruby Rose as Amanda Ripley 
  2. Raven Branwen as Dallas
  3. Sienna Khan as Lambert
  4. Leonardo Lionheart as Brett
  5. Taiyang Xiao Long as Kane 
  6. Bartholomew Oobleck as Ash
  7. Pietro Polendina as Parker



* * *

PREVIEW OF WHAT'S TO COME: 

/

/

"Thank you, Officer Rose, that will be all-"

"-please, you're not listening to me! Taiyang, the crewmember...Taiyang, who went into that cave, said he saw thousands of eggs there. Thousands!"

"Thank you, that will be all-"

"-GODDAMN IT, THAT'S NOT ALL. Because if one of those things get to any of the kingdoms, then that will be all! Then all of this bullshit that you think is so important...you can just kiss all of that goodbye!"

/

/

"They're coming out of the walls! They're coming out of the goddamned walls!"

Cardin's words haunted the Atlesian marines as they began opening fire all around them. They couldn't tell where the Grimm were but it was either let them kill them or fight back. 

"On your right, man!" Winter shouted as she shot towards one of the Grimm. The Grimm fell hard to the ground, its acidic blood tearing right through the metal sheets below it. 

/

/

"7...6."

At that, Summer turned to Cardin. _Wait...6 meters? But isn't that-_

"That can't be, that's inside the room!" Summer snapped at Cardin as she kept her rifle aimed towards the blast doors. In response, Cardin hastily turned to her to show that his scanner was still working.

"It's reading right, man, look!" he shouted. Summer couldn't deny that the dots representing the Grimm were indeed 6 meters away. 

"Well you're not reading it right!" Qrow snapped back. However, he sounded unsure of himself when he did. Everyone in the room had no idea what to expect, especially with how elusive the Grimm had been. 

"5 meters man! Four...man, what the hell?!"

Frustrated, Summer looked to her own scanner. Just like what Cardin said, the Grimm were basically in the room with them. _But that's impossible! What did we miss? We covered the basement, the hallways, we've double-checked each possible corridor. There has to be something else, something we-_

Summer's stomach sank when she realized what it was. As she looked up towards the ceiling, everyone understood what she was thinking. 

_They found a way through the ceiling vents._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Based on: Aliens (1986)
> 
> I thought long and hard about which movie should be the first full-length movie I'd adapt to the RWBY-verse. While doing snippets from movies is fun, I wanted to do a full-length adaptation since that's really why I started writing this fic in the first place. 
> 
> So, out of all the movies I considered, I went with my personal favorite science-fiction movie: Aliens. This is gonna be a fun one so get ready for the next few weeks to be nothing but Aliens/Grimms!


	20. Grimms (Part 1)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summer Rose is brought back to human civilization after surviving an encounter with the Grimm...

Setting: Emergency bunker near the LV-426 abandoned settlement, deep within the Solitas tundra (the unexplored north territory)

_It's over...it's finally over._

Summer Rose sat back in her seat, finally catching her breath. She couldn't help but smile as the monster that terrorized her and killed her entire crew, the thing they called "The Grimm", was dying right before her eyes. It was quick thinking on her part to lure the monster right in front of the dismantled bullhead's engine, then activating the engine in order to fry it. Luckily for her, the engine was still working, probably due to Pietro Polendina working on it the night before.

_Well what do you know, Pietro did end up killing the creature after all. Rest easy, old friend._

As she rested, the sounds of heavy wind and whirling snow began picking up from outside the bunker. _Shit, the snowstorm is picking up._ But even with the danger of being snowed in present, Summer just couldn't find it in her to care. She already knew that she wasn't going anywhere in the Solitas tundra, especially with the bullhead destroyed and all other aircraft in the settlement no longer functional. Even without the snowstorm, she'd be dead in a few hours if she tried to make it back to civilization on foot.

Thus, she had only one way to survive; go into one of the bunker's hibernation pods, set all power in the bunker into maintaining the pod, and hope that Atlas' rescue squadron arrives soon to pick her up. She didn't like the idea of just waiting in the bunker for help but, with no other option available, she had to do it. 

_Think of it this way; this is the only way to get back to my baby girl._

After prepping the pod, Summer turned on one of the bunker's video cameras in order to record a message for the rescue crew, so that they know what happened here. She struggled with her words at first, mainly because she didn't know how to summarize the past 24 hours. How do you explain that the deaths of your entire crew was the result of an abomination? A monster ripped right out of a horror novel? 

She took a deep breath, deciding to just leave that part out. If the rescuers asked for more specifics, then she would tell that story. But for now, she opted to keep her story simple. Summer hit the record button and, looking right into the camera, started speaking.

"Final report of the Ozpin-Salem towing crew designated 'LLNRPLY19', commanding the bullhead 'Nostromo'. Third Officer reporting. The other members of the crew - Taiyang, Sienna, Pietro, Lionheart, Oobleck and Captain Raven - are dead. Cargo and bullhead destroyed. Due to the lack of available vehicles and the fierce Solitas tundra, I have placed myself in hibernation. Hopefully rescue will be sent once the company realizes that a whole crew went missing. With a little luck, I'm hoping that rescue won't take longer than six weeks. This is Rose, last survivor of the 'Nostromo'...signing off."

As she ended the recording, the other survivor of the Grimm massacre approached her. Summer smiled as Zwei hopped up onto her seat and started licking her face. "Alright, alright Zwei," she said with a giggle, "It's time for us to get some sleep." Summer then stood up with Zwei in her arms and walked over to the pods. She laid down with Zwei inside and, after rerouting all power in the bunker to the pods, activated the hibernation sequence. 

As Summer and Zwei fell into hibernation, her last thought was that she would be found soon. But it seems that fate had a different path for her.

Just a few minutes after she went under, the snowstorm outside began burying the bunker. Summer knew that the storm was going to be rough. What she didn't expect was how rough it was actually going to be. 

* * *

**AN AO3 PRODUCTION**

**A WORDWARRIOR FILM-FIC**

**SUMMER ROSE (counterpart: Ellen Ripley)**

**QROW BRANWEN (counterpart: Cpl. Dwayne Hicks)**

**MERCURY BLACK (counterpart: Carter Burke)**

**PENNY POLENDINA (counterpart: Bishop)**

**BLAKE BELLADONNA (counterpart: Rebecca "Newt" Jorden)**

**CARDIN WINCHESTER (counterpart: Pvt. Hudson)**

**CAROLINE CORDOVIN (counterpart: Lt. Gorman)**

**MAY MARIGOLD (counterpart: Pvt. Frost)**

**JAMES IRONWOOD (counterpart: Sgt. Apone)  
  
  
**

**in...**

* * *

Setting: Emergency bunker near the LV-426 abandoned settlement, deep within the Solitas tundra (the unexplored north territory)

Time: Unknown amount of time after Summer Rose went into hibernation...

The bunker was the same as it was before Summer had gone into hibernation. Aside from some of the surface area being icier than before, not much had changed. But outside the bunker, the story was different. The entire building was buried underneath snow and ice to the point that one could reasonably walk over the bunker and not realize they were standing over a building. 

However, today was going to be different than the past few days. 

A loud clang could be heard outside the bunker doors. Suddenly, a bright light was seen, followed by dozens of sparks shooting out from it. Someone, or something, was using a blowtorch to cut through the bunker's doors. It didn't take long for it to do it; after making a rough-looking square, whatever was outside the door kicked the loose piece off, causing a large section of the door to fall off. 

A set of lights from flashlights started lighting up the bunker as a group of masked people in Atlesian armor entered the room. Immediately, they walked over to Summer's pod, the only part of the bunker that had running power, and began scanning it. The leader of the group, the one who led the team into the room, was amazed by the scan results.

"Bio-readouts are all in the green," he said to the team, "Looks like she's alive."

"Well, I'll be damned," another member of his group said, "Someone actually survived being out here?"

"Well, whoever this person is...she's either really brave or really stupid to have gone against Atlas' restricted zone regulations."

"Maybe she didn't know about them?"

"Impossible. Everyone knows you're not allowed this far up north in Solitas anymore. Not like anyone wants to anyways."

* * *

Setting: Hospital in Mantle, Kingdom of Atlas

Time: A week after Summer's rescue 

_Ugh, my aching head. I'm never going to go into hibernation ever again, this sucks._

Summer groaned as she tried to sit up in her...bed? As soon as she realized she was in a bed, a feeling of confusion began overwhelming her. She looked around the room; it was clear she was in a hospital based on the machines around her. If that wasn't obvious, the fact that a nurse came into the room upon her waking up made it clear. The nurse, with a big smile on her face, walked over to her and began adjusting some wires on a nearby machine.

"How are we today?" the nurse asked. Summer groaned once again.

"Terrible," Summer said. The nurse offered her a sympathetic smile as she walked away from her.

"Well, better than yesterday, at least," the nurse said, trying to cheer Summer up. It didn't help but Summer was at least thankful that this nurse was trying.

"Where am I?"

"You're safe. You're at Gateway General, in Mantle. Been here a couple of days. You were pretty groggy at first, but now you're okay. Oh, looks like you've got a visitor."

As the nurse helped Summer sit up in her bed, she pointed to the doors leading to the hallway. Much to her surprise, a man in a tuxedo with silvery-gray hair was carrying Zwei with him. He had a big smile on his face as he walked over to Summer. Summer had no idea who this man was, but she was at least happy to see her dog was okay. 

"Zwei!" Summer said, still a bit tired but her energy coming back to her slowly. The silvery-gray haired man laid Zwei down on Summer's lap and, immediately, the dog started licking Summer's face. "Come here! Hey, come here! How are you, you stupid dog? How are you? Where have you been?" 

As Summer played with her dog, the silvery-gray haired man took a seat next to her. Summer turned to the man, unsure what he wanted. Even though he did bring her dog to him, she wasn't sure if it was because he genuinely cared or he was trying to get on her good side. 

"Guess you two have met?" the man said, pointing to Zwei then to Summer, "Oh, where are my manners? I'm Black. Mercury Black. Just like you, I also work for Ozpin-Salem, but don't let that fool you. I'm really an okay guy."

Summer stared at the man, hoping her face didn't betray that she was studying him, trying to see what he was all about. So far, she didn't see any red flags coming from him. 

"I'm glad to see you're feeling a little better," Mercury Black continued, "They tell me that all the weakness and disorientation should pass soon. That's just natural side effects of such an unusually long hibernation...or something like that." 

That raised Summer's suspicions. _Unusually long? But it should've just been a few weeks, that's not that long._ "What do you mean?" Summer asked, trying to pry for more information, "How long was I in hibernation?"

The smile on Mercury's face turned into a frown, making Summer feel nervous. Suddenly, she didn't like being in this room and was hoping that someone would put her back in hibernation. Or at the very least, take her away from this place. Something didn't seem right about this situation and Mercury's reaction wasn't helping. 

Mercury leaned in, still looking surprised at Summer's question. "Has no one discussed this with you yet?" he asked. Summer detected genuine concern in his tone, increasing her fear.   
  
"No," Summer replied, "But, I mean...I don't...recognize this place. The city, yes, but not this building."  
  
"No, I know...okay. It's just that, this might be a shock to you. It's long-"

"-how long? Please."

Mercury tensed up. Summer was feeling tense as well but she wanted to hear it. She figured that it was better to know now than later. 

With a deep breath, Mercury looked right at Summer and said, "...10 years."

The room felt like it was spinning for Summer as she slowly registered Mercury's words. Her gut dropped, as if she had just gone down a roller coaster. It should have only been a few weeks. But she was gone for a whole decade. _No...that's not...that can't be...Atlas would have sent someone! Why didn't they send anyone? Wait, but what if they did and just never found me-no, that's insane, that's just not possible-_

Summer took a deep breath. She didn't know how else to respond to Mercury, so she said the one thing that she could say at the moment. "What?"  
  
Mercury nodded his head, feeling sorry for her. "That's the thing. You were out there for 10 years. What happened was that after the incident involving your crew and LV-426, the Kingdom of Atlas implemented these new 'restricted zone' regulations that prevented anyone from traversing far up north in Solitas. And these were strictly enforced, made all travel to the unexplored north virtually impossible. Plus, it's not like the average citizen in Atlas was itching to travel these areas either. But I promise you, a search team was sent but an unusually harsh snowstorm had buried the entire bunker. It was like you had just vanished from the face of Remnant. And it's really just blind luck that the Atlesian settlers found you when they did. It's one in a thousand, really. There were so many factors that had to fall into place; them getting authorization to enter the restricted zones, them excavating near where the bunker was and stumbling across your pod. I think you're damn lucky to be alive, ma'am. You could have been sleeping out there forever."

Summer turned away from Mercury. She felt like puking. What was worse was that it was a creeping feeling of dread. Her mind kept repeating the moment Mercury said she was gone for ten years and the more he repeated those words, the worse her body felt. 

_No...wait a minute...my body DOES feel terrible. What's going on?_

Zwei seemed to have noticed as well. Surprising both Mercury and Summer, Zwei barked at them, then turned his attention to Summer. He started growling, as if he were expecting danger. 

Mercury, concerned, turned to Summer and asked, "You...you okay? Summer, are you okay?"

All of a sudden, Zwei ran off. Whatever it sensed, it spooked the hell out of him. Summer didn't have time to yell for him when she felt something in her chest. Something painful. Like something in her was trying to get out.

Then...she felt her stomach move. 

Summer sucked in a deep breath from pain. "Oh...God," she muttered out. Suddenly, the pain shifted to her back. Summer crashed back into the bed, screaming from agony as Mercury immediately hit the emergency help button by the bed. As he did, Summer began thrashing around her bed, trying anything to lessen the pain. In her thrashing, she swiped a nearby table, knocking a glass of water down. It shattered on the ground, spraying water all over Mercury's shoes.

Zwei barked again, now hostile towards Summer. Or at least, hostile to whatever it was that was causing Summer so much pain. 

"Nurse!" Mercury shouted, "Please! Someone get in here now!" 

A doctor and two nurses entered the room and immediately began holding Summer down. Mercury backed away, panicking from what was happening before him.

 _What...is...happening...to me?!_ Summer cried as the pain increased. She heard the doctor call out for the nurses to hold her down but even he seemed unclear on how to help her.

"Kill me," Summer begged. There was just too much pain. Even death felt like a relief at this point, "Just kill me!"

"Hold her down!" the doctor shouted.

But it was too late. The doctor, nurses, and Mercury Black could only watch in horror as something...moved from within Summer's stomach. As Summer rolled her shirt up, she saw something rise from her chest. It didn't take her long to recognize that it was the head of the Grimm.

She had seen this before, when Taiyang died. It was happening all over again.

_No...no...no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no-_

_-NO. NO. NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO-_

/

/

/

"No!" 

Summer jolted up in her bed as she woke up from her dream. Immediately, she patted down the area where the Grimm had emerged from her chest.

Nothing. The pain was gone and there was no sign of the creature. Summer wiped away some sweat from her forehead, thankful that it was just another nightmare. 

_Just another nightmare? I'm chalking this up as a win? Well...I guess the bar really is that low for me now._

As she calmed down, the monitor next to her turned on. It was that same nurse from before. And just like the last time she had a nightmare, she looked concerned for her well-being. "Bad dreams again?" the nurse asked, "You want something to help you sleep?"  
  
Summer shook her head. "No. I've slept enough." The nurse nodded her head at that and the monitor turned off.   
  
Needing some comfort, Summer turned to Zwei, who had been looking at her with his puppy dog eyes. Smiling, she picked him up and started petting him. It helped somewhat. 

"Zwei...come here. It's all right. It's all right now. It's over."

* * *

Setting: Waiting room, Gateway General Hospital

Time: Few hours later...

With the city of Mantle in full-on winter, sitting in the holographic forest of the waiting room was the closest that Summer Rose could get to life back in Vale. She knew the forest was fake; the air was clearly coming from the vents in the room, the bush in the room to make the holograph feel "authentic" was obviously made from plastic, and the forest didn't smell like one. Still, it was better than snow. She had a lifetime's worth of snow and felt like she could go on with the rest of her life without ever seeing snow again. 

Summer turned the illusion off just as Mercury Black entered the room. Immediately, Summer stood up, hoping to hear news from Vale. That was what Mercury had promised when he told her he wanted to meet with her. "Hi, sorry I'm late," he said as he walked up to Summer, "I've been running behind all morning-"

"-is there any word about my daughter?" Summer asked, immediately cutting to the chase. Mercury sighed, his face indicating that he was stressing over something else.

"I really think we should worry about the hearing now," he said, causing Summer to frown.

Even though Mercury had promised to tell her about what was going on with her family, the real reason they were meeting was to discuss an upcoming meeting with the executives of Ozpin-Salem. They wanted to know exactly what happened with the Nostromo and LV-426. Mercury didn't mince words, he told her just how disastrous the operation had been and that the incident had been a major factor in Atlas' decision to restrict travel to the unexplored north. 

Summer knew all of that going into this meet-up with Mercury. But she didn't care about any of that at the moment. First things first, she wanted to know what was going on with her daughter, Ruby.  
  
Mercury, not sensing Summer's glare on him, continued his spiel. "Look, I'm not trying to be an asshole but we don't have a lot of time, okay? I read your deposition, and it's great. If you just stick to that, I think we'll be fine. The thing to remember is there are gonna be a lot of heavyweights in there. You've got Atlesian military, some members of the Atlas council, the Commerce Commission, the Settlement Administration, insurance company guys-"

"-do you have any news about my daughter?" Summer snapped. Mercury stopped and nodded his head, realizing that Summer wasn't going to listen to him unless they addressed this topic first.   
  
"Well, we did come up with some information. Why don't we sit down?" Mercury took a seat and Summer sat next to him. She looked to his hands and saw that he was holding a briefcase. Summer presumed that the briefcase was for Ruby.

"I was hoping to wait until after the inquest," Mercury said as he opened his case and pulled out some files that were inside, "Ruby Rose. Age 23...and that was at the time of her disappearance, which was two years ago. After graduating from Beacon Academy, she enlisted to be a huntress for Vale, in the hopes of one day going to Atlas to travel north and find you. However, the details are murky here but apparently, she went missing during a mission in Mistral. The White Fang were involved. From what I understand, Vale is still looking for her but there's not much in terms of leads. I'm real sorry."   
  
Summer took the photo of Ruby from Mercury, tears forming in her eyes as she did. She looked so grown. The last time she saw her daughter, she was just a tiny, 15-year-old girl with a toothy grin and messy hair. But here she was, a young adult woman. She had let her hair grow out and she looked a lot more professional, more mature. It was just a picture but Summer could tell there was something lost from Ruby. Gone was the childhood innocence she had come to recognize from her daughter. And it tore Summer's heart knowing that she missed this entire phase of Ruby's life, that she became an adult without her guiding her through the years. 

_Damn it...damn it..._

"Even though she was never confirmed to have died, her friends and Beacon Academy still held a memorial in her name," Mercury continued, "They did the ceremony at her hometown on Patch Island...I guess they decided that was the best way to honor her memory. No children. I checked."  
  
Mercury turned to Summer, having given her all the information he had on Ruby Rose. Summer...could only weep. "I promised her...that I'd be home for her birthday," Summer whispered as she gripped the photo of Ruby tighter, "Her 15th birthday."

* * *

Setting: Conference room

Time: Several hours later...

"I'd just like to go back to this point about the override destruct order."

"Is it in the file?"

Summer sighed in frustration as she turned to face the Ozpin-Salem executives, alongside the other major figures who were interested in the LV-426 incident. She couldn't decide which part of the room was worse; staring at the projector screen which was scrolling through the faces of her dead teammates or facing the executives, who were doing their hardest to find a hole in her story. She knew what she saw and what she faced back in the tundra. However, she also knew it was going to be an uphill battle to convince the execs about the Grimm's existence. 

"I don't understand this," Summer said, letting her frustration be known, "We have been here for three and a half hours. Now, how many different ways do you want me to tell the same story?"  
  
The smarmiest-looking member of the execs (who Summer recognized as Jacques Schnee, a high-ranking Atlesian councilmember and one of Ozpin-Salem's major shareholders) did not look impressed with Summer. "Look at it from our perspective, please," he said, "Please?"

Summer, not in the mood to argue with an Atlesian councilmember, simply raised her hands to let him say what he needed to say. She sat down to listen.   
  
"Now, you freely admit to detonating the engines of and thereby destroying, an M-class bullhead, a rather expensive piece of hardware."

"Forty-two million in adjusted liens," said the man next to Jacques Schnee (who Summer recognized as Atlas Councilman Sleet), "That's minus payload, of course."

"The emergency bunker's recordings corroborates some elements of your account in that, for reasons unknown, the Nostromo set down near LV-426, a settlement that had been long abandoned by that time, that it resumed its course and was subsequently set for self-destruct by you for reasons unknown-"  
  
"-not for reasons unknown. I told you. We set down there on company orders to get this thing, which destroyed my crew...and your expensive ship."

Summer tried her best to reign in her anger. It still pissed her off, just thinking about it. She and her team had thought they were answering a distress beacon. It made sense at the time; the far northern region of Solitas was extremely dangerous, even for the most experienced explorer. It turned out, not only was LV-426 long abandoned, they were also there to "collect" one of the things inside the settlement. And Summer had to learn that the hard way; Bartholomew Oobleck, the crew's science officer, turned out to be an android that was programmed to ensure the Grimm's survival. Oobleck had nearly killed her just to do its job.   
  
Jacques Schnee, unamused by what Summer had to say, merely raised his hands to object. "The analysis team, which went over the bunker centimeter by centimeter, found no physical evidence of the creature you describe. Now, there were traces of some organic thing in the room but not enough to prove your monster theory. It had been disintegrated long before, making it impossible to identify. It could've been anything really-"  
  
"-that is the Grimm! I know it is because I burned it to death! Reduced that bastard to ashes! Like I said."

Summer immediately knew she wasn't going to win over any of the execs with that admission. She stood up and walked back over to the projector screen, hoping that this sham of a meeting would end soon. Currently, the projector was stuck on an image of Sienna Khan. Summer cringed as she thought back to her death at the hands of the Grimm, knowing just how awful her murder was.

"Are there any species like this hostile organism near LV-426," Councilman Sleet asked to the other execs, "Or in the unexplored north in general?"  
  
"No," Councilwoman Camilla replied, "It's just snow and ice. No indigenous life."

Summer turned around, even more frustrated with the execs. "Did IQ's just drop sharply while I was away?" she snapped at them. Councilwoman Camilla and Councilman Sleet both frowned at her, feeling slighted by her insult.   
  
"Ma'am, I don't know what it'll take to convince you but it was indigenous," Summer continued, "It was some sort of nest. It was the home of something organic, even in a place like the unexplored north. It was at home there. Maybe you didn't find it because it changed its nesting ground but it's there, I promise you! Do you get it? We homed in on its beacon-"  
  
"-and found something never recorded once in any of the various settlements all across Remnant," Councilwoman Camilla said, sharply, "And I quote, 'a creature that gestates inside a living human/faunus host'-"  
  
"-yes."  
  
"These are your words. 'And has concentrated acid for blood'."  
  
"That's right. Look. I can see where this is going...but I'm telling you that those things exist."

"Thank you, Officer Rose," Jacques Schnee interrupted, "That will be all."

Summer, however, kept going. She wanted the execs to hear her out, even if it seemed futile. "Please! You're not listening to me. Taiyang, the crew member...Taiyang, who went into that cave, said he saw thousands of eggs there. Thousands!" 

"Thank you. That will be all-"

"-GODDAMN IT, THAT'S NOT ALL. Because if one of those things gets to any of the kingdoms, then that will be all! Then all of this bullshit that you think is so important...you can just kiss all of that goodbye!"

At the end of her rant, Summer looked around the table. She knew she lost them the moment she lost her anger. Mercury Black had his face in his hands, clearly frustrated at her outburst, while Councilman Sleet, Councilwoman Camilla, and Jacques Schnee just stared at her. At this point, Summer was beyond caring. She knew what she saw and that was good enough for her.   
  
Jacques Schnee sighed, his tone irritated. "It is the finding of this court of inquiry that warrant officer S. Rose, NOC14472...has acted with questionable judgement and is unfit to hold an Atlesian license as a commercial flight officer. Said license is hereby suspended indefinitely. Now, no criminal charges will be filed against you at this time and you are released on your own recognizance for a six-month period of psychometric probation to include monthly review by an Atlesian psychiatric technician. These proceedings are closed."

**FILE STATUS: CLOSED**

With the meeting ended, the execs started heading out of the room. Summer, frustrated by the whole thing, walked over to a corner of the room to silently vent. _Idiots...all of them! I can't believe this bullshit!_

Mercury Black soon joined her, much to her irritation. She didn't hate the man but right now, she wanted to be alone.   
  
"That could have been better," he said, earning him an eye roll from Summer, "Look, I think the...Rose?"

Summer wasn't paying attention to him. Instead, she walked away and went straight for Jacques Schnee. She wasn't done giving him a piece of her mind. If he wanted to declare her crazy, then fine, but she at least wanted him to make an attempt at seriously investigating her claims. 

"Jacques Schnee," Summer said, stopping the man at the door, "Why don't you just check out LV-426?"

Jacques smirked, confusing Summer. "Because I don't have to," he said, "We haven't been to that abandoned settlement in years but when it comes to the unexplored north, Atlas has been making more of an effort to try to settle those areas. And the settlement closest to the LV-426 site has never complained about any hostile organism."  
  
Summer frowned. "What do you mean? What people?"  
  
"Mainly climate engineers. The ones responsible for creating closed ecological systems. They go in, set up these big sites to make the ground more fertile and viable for life. They're literally building an ecosystem. Takes years. It's what we call a 'Shake 'N Bake' settlement".   
  
Jacques tried to leave, forcing Summer to block his path with her arm. Glaring right at the man, Summer asked, "How many are there? How many settlers?"  
  
"I don't know," Jacques said, "60, maybe 70 families. Do you mind?"

Summer removed her hand, allowing Jacques to leave. Summer could only stare at the wall, thinking about what the man had said.  
  
"Families," she muttered to herself, "Brothers...they don't know." 

* * *

Setting: Hadley's Hope, a settlement near the unexplored northern region of Solitas (set near the border of the restricted zone)

Time: Night

The snowstorm was blowing hard on the small, eco-settlement of Hadley's Hope. Most of the settlers had already gone inside for the night while a brave few remained outside to maintain the settlement's security and power grid. 

Inside the main power station, settlement administrator Peter Port was overseeing the entire operation. As the other Ozpin-Salem employees scrambled about to deal with problems that were popping up in the power grid, Port decided to head out and explore the base. Not much else he could do in this area.

"I'll be down in maintenance, okay?" Port said as he grabbed himself a cup of coffee. Some of the crew nodded their heads at that. However, one decided to follow him. Port groaned as Thumbelina Peach caught up to him with a clipboard in her hands.

"Port," Peach said.

"What?" Port said, trying to ignore her.

"Hey, Port!"

"What?!"

"Remember you sent some wildcatters out to the middle of nowhere last week, out past the Ilium Range?"

"Yeah, what?"

"One of them's on the horn, a mom-and-pop survey team. He says he's onto something. He wants to know if his claim will be honored."

"Why wouldn't his claim be honored?"

"Well, because you sent them to that particular middle-of-nowhere on company orders, maybe? I don't know-"

"-oh, Brothers. Some honch in a cushy office back in Mantle says, 'go look at a grid reference.' We look. They don't say why, and I don't ask. I don't ask, because it takes two weeks to get an answer out here, and the answer is always-"

At the same time, Peach and Port said, "Don't ask". At this point, Peach was well aware of how cryptic their superiors could be back in Mantle. 

"So what do I tell this guy?" Peach asked. 

Port sighed, annoyed by this whole thing. "Tell him as far as I'm concerned, if he finds something, it is his," he said, waving off any possible objections, "Oh, and Peach?"

"What?"

With a fake smile on, Port pointed in the direction of the sound of laughter. Children's laughter. Peach facepalmed herself, realizing this was another problem she had to deal with. 

"You kids know you're not supposed to be on this level!" Peach shouted as the group of kids ran off, "Go on! Get outta here!"

As Peach yelled at the children, one of them, Timothy Belladonna, hopped onto his tricycle and rode off. The other kids laughed as he sped up, hoping to catch up with the rest of the group. As he did, he passed by one of the main company signs:

**OZPIN-SALEM CORP**

**"BUILDING BETTER SETTLEMENTS"**

* * *

Setting: Outside Hadley's Hope, several miles away (approaching LV-426)

Beyond Hadley's Hope, civilization was nowhere to be found. That was why settlers who wanted to traverse the area had to use the Atlesian-sponsored transport vehicles. They were essentially armored trucks, but each one was capable of handling the brutal snowstorms that the area was known for.

In this harsh climate, a lone transport vehicle drove along the snow. Inside the vehicle was the Belladonna family. For Kali and Ghira, aside from doing their duties as employees of Ozpin-Salem, they were hoping to find some untouched riches in the unexplored north. For Blake and her brother Timothy, it was just another boring ride out into the middle of nowhere. 

"Do too! You go in places we can't fit!

"So? That's why I'm the best!"

Kali and Ghira Belladonna sighed as their two young children were arguing once again. What was it about this time? They were not sure but it was probably over something petty and childish. Kali assumed it was about hide-and-seek. It was always about that damn game, especially since all the other kids loved hiding around the settlement. 

"Knock it off," Kali said, turning to the two kids. Immediately, Blake and Timothy stopped, not wanting to anger their mother any further, "I catch either of you playing in the air ducts again, I'll tan your hides."

Blake and Timothy cringed, hating the fact that they were caught by one of Ozpin-Salem's security guards. They couldn't help it though, the vents were the best places to hide in hide-and-seek. 

"But mom," Blake groaned, "All the kids play-"

"-wait, wait, wait, wait a minute," Ghira interrupted, "Kali, come and have a look at this, will you?

Kali turned away from Blake and immediately, her eyes widened when she saw what Ghira was looking at. It was the opening to a cave and, just from where they were, they could see what looked to be giant crystals inside. At the very least, they knew it wasn't ice.

Ghira laughed heartily. This was what he was hoping to find out here. "Folks, we have scored big this time!" he said as he turned to his wife and kissed her on the cheek. 

"What's in there, dad?" Blake asked, feeling curious herself as she looked out the vehicle's windows. 

"I'm not sure. Let's see if we can't get a closer look at the inside of this cave. But first, let's find a place to park, don't want to park just anywhere with this damn tundra changing its mood every few minutes. Also, gotta make sure we don't cross into the restricted zone on accident." 

"Shouldn't we call in?" Kali asked, a little anxious since they were already pushing the limits of Atlas' restricted zone rules. Ghira waved her off. 

"Let's wait till we know what to call it in as". After finding a spot to park the vehicle, Ghira stopped and cut the engine, "Alright, that's about as close as we can get. Should we take a look inside?" He turned to Kali who reluctantly nodded her head. 

After putting on their tundra gear, Kali and Ghira exited the vehicle while Blake and Timothy stayed behind. Before shutting the doors, Kali turned to her kids. "You two stay inside," she said sternly, "I mean it. We'll be right back.

Blake and Timothy nodded their heads. 

"Okay." "Bye."

With that, Kali shut the doors. She and Ghira then walked over to the cave, their flashlights shining the path in front of them. As they got closer, the more impressive the giant crystals were. They weren't sure what it was; ruby, emerald, sapphire, diamond. But whatever it was, it looked valuable. 

/

/

/

Blake wasn't sure how long she had been sitting in her seat. It could've been thirty minutes, it could've been three hours. But however long she had been sitting, too much time had still passed since her parents went into the cave.

She turned to Tim, who had gone to sleep. Feeling nervous for her parents, she nudged Tim awake. He groaned, annoyed that he was woken up. 

"Timmy, they've been gone a long time," Blake said.

"It'll be okay, Blake," Tim said, trying his best to ease her nerves, "Dad knows what he's doing-"

_SCREEEEECCHH!_

Blake and Tim jumped in their seats when all of a sudden, the doors opened. Kali immediately reached over and grabbed the vehicle's radio. From the look on her face, Blake could see that her mother was panicking. Crying even. 

"MAYDAY, MAYDAY," Kali screamed into the radio, "THIS IS ALPHA-KILO-TWO-FOUR-NINE CALLING! THIS IS ALPHA-KILO-TWO-FOUR-NINE CALLING! ALPHA-KILO-TWO-FOUR-NINE CALLING!

As Kali Belladonna frantically screamed for help into the radio, Blake looked over and saw that her father was lying on the ground. What she saw next made her scream.

He was unconscious. And on his face was...something. It seemed to be some sort of creature that was completely covering his face. Its tail was wrapped around Ghira's neck, holding it in place. And what creeped Blake out the most...it seemed to be breathing. 

Blake screamed. That was all she could do at the moment. Just scream at this unknown creature, doing god-knows-what to Ghira. 

* * *

Setting: Summer Rose' apartment, Mantle

Time: A few days after the incident on Hadley's Hope

_Summer ran in, hoping that she reached Pietro and Sienna in time. Instead, what she saw chilled her to the bones. It made her skin crawl and she nearly threw up on the spot._

_Pietro had been impaled right through the stomach. His blood stained the ground around him._

_Sienna was hanging from the ceiling. Blood covered her legs, her blood dripping down from where the Grimm had slashed her._

/

/

/

Summer took a long puff of her cigarette. The nightmares were still present but at the moment, it was her daydreams that were getting to her. She started sweating as she thought back to how her team was brutally slaughtered by that... _thing._ The Grimm. Even in death, the creature was finding ways to torment her. 

_BEEEEEEEPPPPPPP_

Summer looked up as her doorbell went off. She wasn't expecting visitors but she had a good guess as to who it was. Sure enough, when she went to answer the door, she was not surprised at all at the sight of Ozpin-Salem company man Mercury Black standing there. Just like the previous times she met this man, he was carrying a briefcase. 

This time though, he wasn't alone. Next to him was a short, elderly woman with silvery hair, almost matching Mercury's hair. From her attire, the elderly woman was most likely an officer in the Atlesian military. Summer was pretty sure she had never seen this person before. 

"Hey there, Summer," Mercury said, trying to sound friendly, "This is Lieutenant Caroline Cordovin of the Atlesian Marine Corps-"

_SLAM!_

Summer immediately closed the door on them, not wanting to deal with anymore bullshit. It was bad enough that she was chewed out by Jacques Schnee and the rest of the Atlesian bigwigs. She had her fill of this kingdom's politics.

"Um...Rose, we have to talk," Mercury said through the door. Summer tried her best to ignore him but his voice carried through. "We've lost contact with the settlement near LV-426."

 _Wait...what? No...that's...that can't be..._

Slowly, Summer re-opened the door. She could only stare at Mercury and Cordovin in shock. 

/

/

/

As Summer Rose poured a cup of coffee for herself, she couldn't help but feel vindicated after hearing Mercury break down what happened in the unexplored north. She saw it coming from a mile away and was deemed crazy for it. But now that it actually happened...Summer was dreading what could've happened to those poor settlers. 

And now, here was Mercury Black, asking for her help. In fact, not just help...to go back to the unexplored north and find out what happened to the people in Hadley's Hope. She shook her head and thought to herself that these people were out of their minds if they expected her to go back up there again. 

"I don't believe this," she said, taking a sip of her coffee, "You guys throw me at the wolves, and now you want me to go back out there? Forget it. It's not my problem."

Summer poured two more cups of coffee for Mercury and Cordovin. She then handed one of the cups to Mercury. Mercury took it and faced Summer, hoping he could convince her. 

"Can I finish?" he asked.

"No. There's no way." Turning to Cordovin with the other cup, the elderly woman took it and thanked her. 

"Rose, you wouldn't be going in with the troops," Caroline Cordovin said, earning an eye roll from Summer, "I can guarantee your safety."

Summer laughed at that as she turned and walked away from the both of them. _Safety? Ha! They have absolutely no idea what they're talking about. Also, wouldn't an Atlesian settlement already have military posted? If the security teams couldn't handle it, why should I expect these marines could do any better?_

"These Atlesian Marines are very tough hombres," Mercury added, "They're packing state-of-the-art firepower. There's nothing they can't handle. Lieutenant, am I right?"

"That's true," Cordovin said, "We've been trained to deal with situations like this-"

"-then you don't need me," Summer snapped, causing Cordovin to frown at her, "I'm not a soldier."

"Yeah, but we don't know exactly what's going on out there," Mercury said, "It may just be a downed transmitter, okay? But if it's not...I would like you there as an adviser...and that's all."

Summer was unconvinced. Even if she agreed to go, something about all of this didn't feel right. The last time she had taken on a mission for Ozpin-Salem, her entire team had gotten wiped out. And, the company lied to her about their true intentions. Walking over to Mercury, she wanted to know why he was interested in this settlement. 

"What's your interest in all this?" Summer asked directly to Mercury. "Why are you going?" Mercury turned to Cordovin, who shrugged, unable to help him. 

Feeling Summer's glare on him, Mercury sighed and decided to tell her. "Corporation co-financed that settlement, along with Settlement Administration. We're getting into a lot of ecological farming now. You know, 'Building Better Settlements'-"

"-yeah, yeah, I saw the commercial. Look, I don't have time for this. I've got to get to work."

"Right. I heard you're working the cargo docks."

"That's right."

"Running loaders and forklifts, that sort of thing?"

"Yeah. So?"

"Nothing. I think it's great that you're keeping busy. And I know it's the only thing that you could get. There's nothing wrong with it! But what would you say if I told you I could get you reinstated as a flight officer? The company's already agreed to pick up your contract."

It sounded too good to be true, especially after her near-meltdown in front of all the Atlesian bigwigs. Summer stared back at Mercury, expecting to hear the catch. 

"If I go?" Summer asked. 

"Yeah, if you go. Come on! That's a second chance, Miss Rose. I think, personally, for you, it would be the best thing in the world to get out there and face this thing! You know, get back on the horse-"

"-spare me, Mercury. I've had my psych evaluation this month."

"Yeah, I know. I've read it. You wake up every night. Your sheets are soaking with sweat-"

"-I SAID NO, AND I MEAN IT."

Summer didn't mean to snap but hearing Mercury read off her psych report was enough to trigger her. Mercury immediately stopped, realizing he was starting to cross over the line. Caroline Cordovin merely looked away. She didn't say anything but she saw that response coming from a mile away. 

Mercury nodded his head, realizing this conversation was finished. "Okay," he muttered. 

"Now, please leave," Summer said back to him, "I am not going back. And I am...I would not be any good to you if I did."

"Okay. Sure. But would you please at least do me a favor? Just think about it." Summer lit another cigarette as Mercury placed his business card on her counter.

"Thanks for the coffee," Cordovin said as she and Mercury headed out of Summer's apartment. 

As soon as Mercury and Cordovin left the apartment, Summer turned to feed Zwei. She hoped that this was the end of her dealings with Ozpin-Salem and the business with the Grimm.

/

/

/

_"HOLD HIM DOWN!"_

_"TAIYANG, WHAT'S GOING ON WITH YOU!"_

_"SOMEBODY GET A SEDATIVE-"_

_All of a sudden, Taiyang's chest exploded. His blood covered Sienna Khan's face, causing her to scream in terror. As the crew of the Nostromo stepped back in fear, they saw what appeared to be a tiny creature emerge from his chest-_

"NO!"

Summer woke up in her bed, clutching her chest as she did. She was drenched with sweat and her breathing was frantic. Once again, another nightmare about the Grimm. No matter what she did, the nightmares wouldn't go away. 

Needing to clear her mind, she got up from her bed and walked over to the bathroom. She washed her face, clearing the sweat that was covering it. Looking into the mirror, she began to realize something. 

This isn't going away anytime soon. 

These dreams are going to be the norm unless you do something about it. 

And as those thoughts came to her, she recalled what Mercury Black had told her earlier that day. That she needed to "get back on the horse." She hated him for saying it but after another Grimm-themed nightmare...she began to wonder if he was right. _Oh, I'm so going to regret this._

Grabbing Mercury Black's business card, she took out her scroll and dialed the number. Almost immediately, Mercury answered. 

"Hello," he said, sounding groggy. It was clear he had just woken up. "Rose? You okay-"

-just tell me one thing, Mercury," Summer interrupted, "You're going out there to destroy them, right? Not to study...not to bring back...but to wipe them out."

Mercury took a pause. Then, Summer heard him say, "That's the plan. You have my word on it.

 _Good enough for me._ "All right. I'm in."

At that, she hung up on the man. Wondering if she had completely lost her mind, Summer turned to Zwei, who was looking at her with his usually goofy face. Summer smiled at him and petted his head. "And you, you little shithead...you're staying here."

Zwei barked at her and licked her face. Deep down, Summer hoped this wasn't the last time she would see Zwei. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Based on: Aliens (1986)
> 
> Just a reminder, if you haven't done so already, go over to the "POLL 1" chapter and vote for your favorite of the movie selections! Whichever gets the most votes will be the next full-length, movie-to-RWBY adaptation, right after I finish work on "Grimms".
> 
> AN: Yeah, I had to tweak a lot of details from the original movie. Obviously, this is not taking place in space, it's taking place in an alternate Remnant. I will say that I tried to make sure the changes didn't detract from the main story beats. The only things that will change are lore stuff but the story should flow like the original movie. 
> 
> AN2: To get an idea of how I'm picturing this version of Solitas, imagine the far-northern region being like the Land of Always Winter in "A Song of Ice and Fire". No one in their right mind would want to explore that shit, that's how frozen and cursed it is.
> 
> AN3: Those Sleet and Camilla cameos though. I want to work in more minor characters into future chapters. I mean, it's easy to just write these minor characters into something generic, like "councilman 1" or "nurse 3", but I find it fun to attach a name to them.
> 
> AN4: Quick note about Blake's age. The reason why she's acting like a little kid here is because, like Newt, she's only about 10 or 11 years old.


	21. Grimms (Part 2)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> On the way to Hadley's Hope, Summer Rose is introduced to the Atlesian marines who have been assigned to investigate the area...

Setting: Atlesian Military Airship, on its way to Hadley's Hope (flying over 80,000 feet above the ground)

Time: One day later...

Ozpin-Salem spared no expense when it came to funding the trip to the unexplored north. With how much they were investing in these settlements, the giant military airship came with everything a platoon needed for combat. Inside, there were smaller bullheads for increased maneuverability and troop transport, paladin units that the marines could use to either maintain the ship (non-combat versions designed solely for labor use) or take on a large threat (the regular, combat versions), miniature nukes in case they needed to level the area, and enough firepower to take on a whole brigade of White Fang fighters...and still have enough left over to fight the reinforcements. 

Atlas wasn't taking any chances with this potential threat to their settlements. In fact, that was also why they were flying so far from the ground; to do both reconnaissance in case the settlement had been taken over by something other than the Grimm and to avoid detection. 

The marines and the accompanying civilians were all in hypersleep at the moment. As soon as the military airship was in proximity of the settlement, a computer monitor near the sleeping passengers lit up. Onscreen, the names of everyone in the airship was listed out, starting with the highest-ranking officer and ending with the civilians. 

  1. Cordovin, C.
  2. Ironwood, J. 
  3. Branwen, Q. 
  4. Bree, H.
  5. Schnee, W.
  6. Ebi, C.
  7. Zeki, V.
  8. Greenleaf, J.
  9. Marigold, M.
  10. Ederne, E. 
  11. Amin, M.
  12. Winchester, C. 
  13. Polendina, P.
  14. Rose, S.
  15. Black, M. 



Once all the names were listed, the airship started the process of waking the passengers up. The pods were all opened simultaneously and the lights in the area turned on (lights had been kept off to preserve power since they weren't necessary). Slowly, the passengers began to stir, awakened either by the sudden light or the coldness of the ship. 

As Summer Rose sat up in her pod, she turned over to the marines, already starting to gauge them out. Since she was going to be working with these people for the next few days, she wanted to know if these people were trustworthy. Just from one scan over the marines, she immediately picked up on some of their quirks.

James Ironwood, as soon as he woke up, went into his pocket and pulled out a cigar. He started smoking right on the spot, as if he didn't just wake up from hypersleep.

Qrow Branwen, in a similar fashion to Ironwood, reached for his flask that was by his side in the pod. She wasn't sure what he was drinking but from the looks of it, she could tell it wasn't water or juice. 

Winter Schnee, after getting up from her pod, started doing pull-ups. She definitely looked the type to exercise frequently just based on the muscles that Summer noticed on her. It was to the point that when Summer looked at her own arms, she couldn't help but feel disappointed. _Hmm...maybe I should start working out more._

Everyone else just seemed to be trying to stretch and get ready for the rest of the day. Some were doing fairly well, others not as much. One of the soldiers struggling to wake up was Clover Ebi, the soldier who was in the pod to the left of Summer. He looked the worst off compared to everyone else, just based on how much he was struggling to sit up. 

"They ain't paying us enough for this, man," Clover whined. This earned him a scoff and an eyeroll from Joanna Greenleaf, who was in the pod next to his. 

"Not enough to have to wake up to your face, Ebi," she said as she got up from her pod. 

"What? Is that a joke?"

"I wish it were." 

Ebi sighed and turned away from Greenleaf. He then set his sights on Qrow, who was waking up in the pod to the right of Summer. Qrow had just finished drinking from his flask, which he seemed to regret doing from the way he was grabbing his head. 

"Hey, Branwen. Man, you look just like I feel." Clover laughed as Qrow raised his middle finger at him. Qrow then stood up, flask still in his hands, and walked over to the lockers that were across from where the pods were. 

As the marines got up and started moving around (for Cardin, after a round of coughing, which he claims was a side effect of hypersleep), James Ironwood started moving around the troops. His face was stern, as if he was unhappy with the group just laying around. 

"All right, sweethearts," Ironwood said as he puffed out some smoke from his mouth, "What are you waiting for, breakfast in bed? It's another glorious day in the corps. A day in the Marine Corps is like a day on the farm. Every meal's a banquet, every paycheck is a fortune, and every formation is a parade. God, I love the Corps!"

"Oh, Brothers," May Marigold said, annoyed at Ironwood's voice.

"Man, this floor is freezing!" Cardin Winchester whined as he struggled to move about. Ironwood, while annoyed at Marigold's tone, turned to Cardin instead. 

"What do you want me to do?" he said to the private, "Fetch your slippers for you?"

Cardin smirked at Ironwood in response, further irritating the sergeant. "Gee, would you, sir?" Cardin said in his usual smug tone, "I'd like that."

Ironwood wasn't having it. "Look into my eye," he growled at Cardin. Then, to the rest of the marines, Ironwood shouted, "Fall in, people! Come on. Let's go! Amin, Ederne, come on. On your feet!" 

"I hate this job," Marigold whispered as Ironwood walked past her. This got Elm Ederne and Marrow Amin to chuckle, which Ironwood chose to ignore. 

As the soldiers got ready for the day, Summer Rose quietly moved over to her locker and kept to herself. She changed into her clothes and tried her best not to make eye contact with anyone. Even though these marines were supposed to protect her, she still felt awkward about this whole situation. She never expected to return to the unexplored north and, even with everything that Atlas provided, she couldn't shake her nerves. So she decided it was best to maintain a low-profile for now and, hopefully, settle in soon. 

Despite Summer's attempts to keep to herself, her anxiousness and discomfort wasn't lost on the soldiers, especially to Winter Schnee. Winter knew some details about their civilian adviser from her father, but only a few and not enough to get the big picture. She knew that something happened to her out in the unexplored north and that it cost her her license. Outside of that, she was a blank slate. Winter stopped doing pull-ups then turned to Harriet Bree, who was changing into her gear behind her. 

"Hey, Bree," Winter said as she kept her eye on Summer, "Who's Little White Riding Hood?"

Harriet just shrugged, unsure what to tell her. "She's supposed to be some kind of consultant," Harriet said, "Apparently, she saw a monster once."

Cardin, who was changing nearby, chuckled at that as he joined the two women. "Whoopee-fucking-do," he said, sarcastically, "Hey, I'm impressed." 

"How much you want to bet that what she actually saw was a giant snowman?" Winter joked, which both Cardin and Harriet laughed at. 

Winter went back to doing pull-ups and was joined by Clover. As she pulled herself up, Cardin, who was looking at her bulging arm muscles, smirked and said, "Hey, Schnee. Just wondering...have you ever been mistaken for a man?"

Winter rolled her eyes at that as she came down from the bar. Turning to the grinning idiot, she said, "No....have you?" 

Clover, Cardin and Harriet couldn't help but laugh at that. Even if it was at his expense, Cardin didn't mind. He was used to the insults coming from Winter. After all, the marines didn't call Winter Schnee the "Ice Queen" for no reason.

Turning to each other, Winter and Clover did their signature handshake. Looking right at her, Clover said, "Schnee...you're just too cold."

Unsurprisingly, this earned him a light slap to the face. Clover laughed it off as Winter walked away, still grinning. 

* * *

Setting: Mess hall 

Time: A few minutes later...

As the marines and civilians gathered around for breakfast, Cardin couldn't help but ask about their mission. The crew knew something happened in Hadley's Hope but the specific details were not provided.

"Hey, Top," he said as he sat down next to Ironwood, "So what's the op?"

"It's a rescue mission," Ironwood said, "You'll love it. There's some juicy settlers' daughters we have to rescue from their virginity."

Most of the marines laughed at the crude joke while Summer stared at Ironwood, unhappy. _Were these soldiers not informed about what we're dealing with? Why is no one taking this seriously? Oh...right...they're working for Ozpin-Salem. And they didn't take me seriously. Why did I even expect these soldiers would take things seriously when their bosses laughed me out of their company. Fucking figures._

"Dumb-ass settlers," Vine Zeki said, shaking his head at the thought of rescuing some eco-farmers in the middle of nowhere. As he took a bite of his food, he immediately cringed at the taste. "What's this crap supposed to be?"

"Corn bread, I think," May Marigold said, trying the food herself. She shrugged at the taste, not seeing what Vine was complaining about. 

Qrow didn't mind the taste of the corn bread either. "It's good for you, boy," he said as he finished his piece, "Eat it." Vine Zeki groaned as he took another bite of the bread, still cringing from the taste. 

As the marines kept on eating, Marigold started grinning as she turned to Cardin. "Hey Cardin," she said as she leaned in to make sure Cardin heard her, "Remember our last op in Kuo Kuana? Sure wouldn't mind getting some more of that faunus poontang. Remember that time?!"

Cardin, and the other marines who heard her, all laughed. Knowing what Marigold was talking about, he nodded his head and did their signature handshake. Crude memories...but good times. 

Vine, knowing the full story, turned to Marigold and said, "Yeah...except the one that you had was male."

Marigold brushed him off and, with a big grin on her face, said to him, "Doesn't matter when it's faunus."

That got all the marines to laugh, even Marrow Amin, the group's sole faunus member. Meanwhile, Summer Rose couldn't help but wonder if she was working with professional soldiers or idiots that Atlas picked up right off from the streets. 

As the marines continued to share more stories about their time in Menagerie and Kuo Kuana, Penny Polendina entered the room and started tending to the crew's needs. Noticing Penny's presence, Cardin pulled out his military-issued knife and got Penny's attention. "Hey," he said to her, "Penny, yo...can you do the thing with the knife?"

Immediately, Penny frowned while the other marines tried to encourage Penny to do the "thing".

"Oh, please no," Penny whined as Cardin tried to hand the knife to her. Initially, Penny tried to walk away to avoid doing the trick. However, due to all the marines egging her on, Penny sighed and took the knife from Cardin. She figured that another demonstration wouldn't hurt. Besides, the marines enjoyed watching her do the knife act. 

The marines cheered as Penny did a warm-up with the knife. As she flipped the knife to herself, Clover stood up from his seat, a devious grin on his face as he approached Cardin. Penny, after warming herself up, put her hand flat on the table to do the trick. However, that was when Clover pushed her hand away, grabbed Cardin's hand, and placed it on the table instead. To make sure Cardin couldn't back away from this, Clover held him in place with his other arm. 

Penny, intrigued, kept her eye on Clover to see what he wanted her to do. 

"Hey, what are you doing, man?" Cardin said with a chuckle, "What are you doing? Come on! Quit messing around, Ebi!"

"Winchester, shut up," Clover said. He was still being friendly but something about his tone unnerved Cardin.

Seeing Cardin's hand flat on the table, Penny picked up on what Clover wanted her to do. Although it seemed silly and unnecessary, Penny decided to humor the marines. Just to make sure she didn't mess up and accidentally harm Cardin, she placed her own hand over Cardin's. 

Cardin, sensing what was about to happen, started to panic.

"Penny, hey, what are you-"

"-do it, Polendina!" Ebi shouted with glee. 

"Hey! Not me, man! Quit messing around!"

"Yeah, you. Don't move. Come on Penny, get it over with."

Just to make sure the trick would go smoothly, Penny did a few slow knife stabs in the spaces between her fingers. After making sure there was enough space to avoid hitting either her fingers and Cardin's fingers, she turned to Cardin and, with confidence, said, "Trust me."

The marines went silent as Penny started working her magic. Their eyes went wide in amazement as Penny kept bringing the knife down, just narrowly avoiding her and Cardin's fingers. Then...she picked up speed. Cardin was screaming as Penny went into full-speed. 

[_Chop...chop...chop...chop...chop...chop...chop_ -](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3hiTlGNDH9Y&ab_channel=eltoro)

[ _-Chop, chop, chop, chop, chop, chop, chop, chop-_ ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3hiTlGNDH9Y&ab_channel=eltoro)

[ _-Chopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchop-_ ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3hiTlGNDH9Y&ab_channel=eltoro)

[ _-CHOPCHOPCHOPCHOPCHOPCHOPCHOPCHOPCHOPCHOPCHOPCHOPCHOPCHOP-_ ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3hiTlGNDH9Y&ab_channel=eltoro)

The marines cheered as Penny finished the trick. With a big grin on her face, she gave the knife back to Cardin and said, "Thank you". Cardin, still stunned at what just happened, took the knife back from her. Penny then turned and walked away, leaving Cardin to his thoughts.

Clover, who was laughing the whole time, let Cardin go and went back to his seat. "There you go, short shit," he said, causing Winter Schnee to laugh, "Enjoy your meal."

Cardin wasn't pleased with that. "That wasn't funny, man!" he shouted, which only made Clover laugh at him even harder. 

As the marines started to settle down, Penny grabbed herself a plate of food and joined the "civilian table", where Summer, Mercury, and, surprisingly, Caroline Cordovin were sitting. Raising the tray to them, she tried to offer the food. "Lieutenant Cordovin? Mr. Black? Ms. Rose? Care for some cake?"

Summer ignored her. Caroline shook her head and said, "No". Mercury, not seeing any reason to turn her down, grabbed a piece of cake from Penny.

The fact that Caroline was sitting away from the other marines was not lost on them, especially Qrow Branwen. Scoffing at their supposed commanding officer, he turned to the others and said, "Looks like the new lieutenant's too good to eat with the rest of us grunts."

May Marigold couldn't help but agree. "Grandma's definitely got a corncob up her ass."

"You got that right, chief." Qrow couldn't help but shake his head, disappointed that this was supposed to be their leader. 

Back at the civilian table, Summer turned to Penny when she noticed that the woman was staring at her finger. Knowing that she had just done some sort of knife game with the marines, Summer assumed that Penny had cut her finger on accident. What she wasn't expecting was the color of the blood.

White. _And only androids bleed white._

Mercury didn't think much of it, clearly not seeing Summer's apprehension. Leaning towards Penny, Mercury said, "Thought you never miss, Penny-"

"-you never said anything about an android being on board," Summer quickly interrupted, "Why not?"

Mercury and Cordovin frowned, clearly not expecting this to be an issue. Summer cursed at herself for not mentioning this earlier. Although the Grimm was the issue here, she also didn't want to deal with androids, especially not after her experience with Oobleck. Even though the Oobleck-android was nowhere near as life-scarring as the Grimm was, it was still an experience she never wanted to go through again. You couldn't really blame her; anyone would feel that way after almost being killed by a malfunctioning android that deemed you expendable. 

"It never...never occurred to me," Mercury sheepishly said, not sure how to appease Summer, "It's just common practice in Atlas. We always have a synthetic on board."

Penny frowned at the use of the word 'synthetic'. "I prefer the term 'artificial person' myself," Penny said. Mercury grinned back at her, embarrassed. 

"Right, right." 

Turning to Summer, Penny asked, "Is there a problem?" 

_Is there a problem? Hell yes there's a problem!_ Summer glared at Mercury, hoping that he would get why she was feeling this way. Then, all at once, it came back to Mercury. One of the biggest parts of Summer's file. He facepalmed himself, realizing what the issue was.

"I'm sorry," he said, as if it wasn't a major problem, "I don't know why...I didn't even...look, Rose's last trip out, the syn-I mean, the artificial person malfunctioned."

"Malfunctioned?!" Summer growled, almost to the point of yelling it out. _How does a malfunction explain that thing intentionally trying to kill me!?_

"There were problems and a few deaths were involved." 

Penny's eyes widened as she took in this information. She looked as if she were disgusted by the news. Summer didn't buy it. "I'm shocked," Penny said, "Was it an older model?"

"The Hyperdyne Systems 120-A2," Mercury replied. 

"That explains it then. The A2s always were a bit twitchy. That could never happen now with our behavioral inhibitors. It is impossible for me to harm, or by omission of action allow to be harmed, a human being." 

Summer just glared at Penny. It was all just words to her. The fact that Penny was an android made by Ozpin-Salem didn't make things any better. If anything, it just heightened her paranoia. 

Sensing the tension coming from Summer, Penny grabbed the tray with cake inside and offered it to Summer once again. "You sure you don't want some-"

_CLANG!_

Penny nearly jumped in her seat when Summer shoved the tray out of her face. The tray hit the ground, cake spilling everywhere as it did. All the marines immediately stopped talking and turned to the civilian table, unsure what was going on over there. 

Summer didn't care all eyes were on her. At this point, she was used to uncomfortable stares by people who thought she was crazy. "You just stay away from me, Penny," she warned the red-headed android, "You got that straight?"

Penny, unsure how to respond, looked away from Summer's glare and decided to clean the tossed-over cake. 

"Guess she don't like the corn bread, either," Marigold muttered, still not clear as to what was going on. 

* * *

Setting: Hangar bay, Atlesian Military Warship

Time: One hour later...

"Squad, ten-hut! Officer on deck!

The Atlesian marines all gathered around a pile of ammunition that was being prepped for the drop to Hadley's Hope. This was the moment Summer was waiting for; Caroline Cordovin was getting ready to brief the team on what they were doing and, if needed, she would provide additional details about what they are dealing with. However, based on the team's behavior back during breakfast, Summer was worried that no one would take her seriously.

_Hell...I might not take myself seriously. I mean...a monster that lives in the harshest area of Solitas? Never before seen? And it emerges from people's chest? Sounds like a cheesy ghost story._

"As you were," Cordovin said as she moved in front of the marines. Summer could've sworn that she saw Branwen and Schnee frown at the elderly woman as they moved to their places around the ammo pile. 

"Quickly, quickly," James Ironwood said, trying to get the marines to hurry up, "Settle down. All right...listen up." At that, Ironwood stepped back to let Cordovin take the spotlight. Summer stayed back, keeping her eyes on Cordovin. 

"Morning, marines," Cordovin started, fixing her hair up as she did, "I'm sorry we didn't have time to brief you people before we left Gateway but-"

"-Ma'am?"

Cordovin stopped when she saw Pvt. Winchester raise his hands. _Okay Summer...let's start remembering names here. Schnee is the one with the white hair and the arm muscles. Qrow is the drinking guy. Ironwood is the smoker. And the one that's raising this hand, that's...Winchester. The dumb one._

"What is it, Branwen?" Cordovin asked. Summer could immediately feel the shift in the mood. 

Ironwood turned away to avoid anyone seeing him chuckle.

Qrow frowned at being confused for Cardin.

Winter didn't even try to hide her smirk, happy that the drunk and the idiot were interchangeable.

The rest of the marines just looked disappointed in Cordovin's answer. 

Cardin sheepishly pointed to Qrow. "I'm Winchester, ma'am. He's Branwen."

Cordovin just stared back, not acknowledging her mistake. "What's the question?" she snapped at Cardin. 

"Is this gonna be a stand-up fight, ma'am, or another bug hunt?"

Cordovin hesitated as she formed her response. "All we know is that there's still no contact with the settlement...and that a creature known as the 'Grimm' may be involved."

That didn't go over well with the marines. Summer started sweating as she saw the faces on the marines, all of them not taking the situation seriously. She wanted to scream at them, tell them how she lost her entire team to this thing. However, she held herself back to let Cordovin try to salvage the situation.

"Excuse me, ma'am, a what?" May Marigold asked, a smug smile on her face as she did.

"A Grimm."

Cardin chuckled. "Yup, it's a bug hunt," he said, causing the other marines to chuckle as well. Summer bit down on her tongue to maintain her composure.

Qrow, despite being skeptical to the situation, raised his hand to get a better idea of what was going on. "What exactly are we dealing with here?" he asked. He didn't know it but Summer felt relieved, hoping that he would be the one marine who would take her seriously. 

Cordovin turned to Summer. "Rose," she said as she took a step back. Summer, realizing this was her moment to shine, took in a deep breath and stepped forward. 

"I'll tell you what I know," Summer said, starting her recount of her encounter with the Grimm, "We set down on LV-426. One of our crew members was brought back on board with something attached to his face...some kind of parasite. We tried to get it off. It wouldn't come off. Later, it seemed to come off by itself and die. Taiyang seemed fine. We were all having dinner, and...um...it must have laid something inside his throat, some sort of embryo. He started...um...he..."

_"HOLD HIM DOWN!"_

_"TAIYANG, WHAT'S GOING ON WITH YOU!"_

_"SOMEBODY GET A SEDATIVE-"_

_All of a sudden, Taiyang's chest exploded. His blood covered Sienna Khan's face, causing her to scream in terror. As the crew of the Nostromo stepped back in fear, they saw what appeared to be a tiny creature emerge from his chest-_

"-Look, man."

Summer stopped. Her breathing had started getting heavy but, thanks to Winter Schnee's interruption, she managed to control herself. She hated that she was about to have another horrifying daydream, right in front of everyone. Not wanting to worry everyone, she turned to Winter who had interrupted her and nodded at her to continue. 

"I only need to know one thing," Winter continued, "Where they are." Clover Ebi laughed as Winter pretended to fire at a Grimm. Although Summer felt that Winter was being disrespectful, she was fine with the interruption. Anything to distract her from going into another awful daydream. 

"Yo, Schnee, let's kick some ass," Clover said. Once again, the two did their signature handshake.

"Anytime, anywhere," Winter said back to Clover. 

Cardin, with a big, dumb grin on his face, then leaned in from behind Winter. "Right, right," he said, "Anyone find it funny that as soon as we learn that we're fighting some sort of monster in the land of ice, the 'Ice Queen' instantly wanted to fly over and blow it up? Sounds like someone's jealous that there could be a bigger ice queen than her-" 

Cardin stopped when Winter flashed her middle finger right at him. "Fuck you, man," she said, getting the bully to laugh even harder. 

"Anytime, anywhere," he said right back to Winter, earning him an eye roll. 

Summer wasn't please with their antics. Instantly, she felt the anger come back to her and before she could stop herself, the words came flying out of her mouth. "Are you finished!?" she snapped at them, getting the marines to stop smirking. Winter looked at Summer, surprised at her sudden outburst. 

Sensing the tension in the room, Summer stepped towards Winter and, in a calmer tone, said, "I hope you're right. I really do." She really did mean it. If the marines did manage to wipe out the Grimm colony, then for what it's worth, they deserved the right to chuckle and laugh. But right now, she needed them to take things seriously. 

Winter, hearing the genuine fear in Summer's voice, nodded her head. 

Cordovin stepped up. "Yeah, okay, right," she said, "Thank you, Rose. Now, we also have Rose's report on disc. I suggest you study it-"

"-because just one of those things managed to wipe out my entire crew in less than 24 hours. And if the settlers have found the Grimm's nest, then there's no telling how many of them have been exposed. Do you understand?!"

Summer didn't mean to rant at the marines. _Damn it...I did it again._ However, as Summer stepped back, she saw that there was indeed a change in the room's mood.

Winter Schnee was looking at her stone-faced, finally taking the threat seriously. Qrow Branwen and James Ironwood looked concerned. Cardin Winchester's smirk was gone, replaced with a look that indicated he was somewhat disturbed by her story. As for the rest of the marines...no one was laughing now. 

Cordovin, sensing the tension in the room, nodded at Summer to step back. "Anyway," Cordovin said, "We have it on disc, so you better look at it. Any questions?"

Only one hand went up; Cardin's. 

"What is it, private?" Cordovin asked. 

With the smirk back on his face, Cardin said, "How do I get out of this chickenshit outfit?" Summer almost lunged at the man for making her believe he was going to be serious from now on. 

Thankfully, before Summer could yell at the man, Ironwood shouted, "You secure that shit, Winchester!"

Cordovin, like before, ignored Cardin's attempt to get under her skin. "All right," she said, "Now listen up. I want this thing to go smooth...and by the numbers. I want DCS and tactical database assimilation by 0830. Ordinance loading, weapons strip and bullhead prep details will have seven hours. Now, move it, people!" Cordovin then turned to leave the hangar bay, much to the team's annoyance. 

The Atlesian marines all started groaning at the amount of time they were given to finish the mentioned tasks. Based on their reactions, Summer thought to herself that if Cordovin wasn't well-liked by the team before, this move certainly sunk their opinion of her even further. If anything, it made her question if Cordovin could actually lead a team that hated her guts. 

As soon as Cordovin left, Ironwood stepped up to address the marines. "All right, sweethearts. You heard the woman, and you know the drill. Assholes and elbows! Winchester, come here! Come here!"

Lightening the mood a bit, the marines (including Summer and Mercury) laughed as Cardin walked over to Ironwood to be chewed out in front of everyone. 

* * *

WINTER SCHNEE

Setting: Atlas military base, living quarters

Time: A few hours before the team had left to Hadley's Hope

"So Schnee, apparently your dad's the one who ordered this next mission."

Winter Schnee had been lying down on her bed, trying her best to focus on her game that she was playing on her scroll. It was downtime and she wanted to use the break to relax. But as soon as she heard May Marigold's words, she put her scroll down and turned to face her. Marigold was also lying on her bed, looking right up at the ceiling.

"Where'd you hear that?" Winter asked.

May shrugged. "Heard Ironwood talking. I didn't get the full details but apparently, Ozpin-Salem lost a settlement near the unexplored north and they want us to investigate."

Winter scoffed at that. _They're sending marines to check in on some eco-farmers? Don't we have rescue services for that job?_ "Sounds like a waste of time to me."

"Sure, but if your dad's the one who ordered the mission, then it must be serious. Maybe we're being attacked by the White Fang or something-"

"-or, knowing my father, he's concerned that he's about to lose a lot of money from the lost settlement and is using Atlas military to secure his investments. Even if it was White Fang, he's not sending us to protect Atlas, he's sending us to protect his wallets."

 _That's the Schnee way, I guess._ Winter frowned, realizing that her brother was going down this path as well. And, if she wasn't careful...her sister. Winter couldn't help but wonder if things would've been different if Weiss had been sent to Atlas Academy instead of Beacon. Would she turn out exactly like Whitley and Jacques had she stayed with the family? 

"That's pretty harsh, Schnee," Marigold replied back.

"Well, it's my dad, so I'm allowed to be harsh."

"Yeah, yeah, I know. You really are the 'Ice Queen'."

"If you call me that again, I will punch you. Don't play with me." 

At that, Marigold laughed. Winter couldn't help but laugh as well. _Well...maybe I am a bit icy to people. But they don't have to rub it in my face!_

"Okay, but like I was saying," Marigold said, "Even if this mission is just to protect Jacques Schnee's wallets, we can technically still say that we're doing our job and protecting Atlas. I mean, the settlements are still part of Atlas. Why should this mission be any different from the ones we usually go on?"

"I'm not saying we shouldn't help these people out. I just hate that there could be an ulterior motive-"

"-that's how it is with our line of work, regardless if Jacques Schnee or the bigwigs at Ozpin-Salem are involved. When we go after the White Fang, or Mistralian criminal organizations, or, heck, Vacuan warlords...there's always a hidden motive. You really think Atlas is out here trying to save the world? No, I mean...it's nice to protect the world and take down the bad guys but in the end, Atlas is going to do what is best for the kingdom's interests. And what is in Atlas' interests is going to go against someone else's interest. That's just how it works. And us two...we're just the grunts doing their dirty work."

_Well...when you put it like that..._

Winter frowned but acknowledged Marigold's point. 

"Still...it does suck to think that we could just be Jacques Schnee's private army at this point," Marigold said, "That's definitely not what I signed up for."

"Yeah well...try being his daughter. You only had to deal with the man when you joined the marines. I had to deal with him since I was born."

* * *

Setting: Hangar bay, Atlesian Military Airship

Time: Several hours later...

"I don't care if you are short, Winchester. Get it done!" 

Cardin groaned as he finished fixing up a missile that would be added to one of the airship's various bullheads. James Ironwood wasn't making his life any easier by barking orders at him. What made it worse was that Ironwood was smoking one of his cigars, blowing smoke all around where Cardin was working. 

"Hey, sarge," the bully said as he started walking away, "You'll get lip cancer smoking those."

Ironwood ignored the insult, instead focusing on Joanna Greenleaf who was working on the airship's loading docks. "Corporal, I want this loading lock sealed. Now." Greenleaf acknowledged the command and nodded her head at him. 

Ironwood then moved on, approaching Vine Zeki who was using a construction-type paladin unit to move missiles into the bullheads. "How many more you got, Zeki?" Ironwood asked.

"Last one," Vine replied as he used the paladin to lift the last of the missiles. Ironwood nodded as he heard the gears in the paladin started whirring. 

"Good. Take it away."

As Ironwood walked away, Vine Zeki completed the transfer by loading the final missile into the bullhead. The latch where the missile was inserted then closed. "Clear behind," he said as he started backing the paladin unit away from the bullhead. He then walked towards the ordinance room in order to store the paladin away. 

With all the marines moving about, Summer Rose started feeling...useless. Although she was doing her job as advisor, she felt like she could be doing more. That was why she went over to the hangar bay and walked over to Ironwood, who was talking to Qrow Branwen. What they were talking about, Summer wasn't sure. However, it sounded like the usual inventory discussion. 

"Hi," she said, interrupting both men, "I feel like kind of a fifth wheel around here. Is there anything I can do?"

Ironwood, whose cigar was still in his mouth, just shrugged while Qrow looked at her, unsure what to say. 

"I don't know," Ironwood said, "Is there anything you can do?

Summer tried her best to hide her disappointment by smiling at the sergeant. _Did any of these people read my file? I'm a...well, I was a warrant officer. I'm a certified pilot! Brothers, it's like I'm talking to children._

Pointing at a construction-type paladin unit that wasn't being used at the moment, Summer said, "Well, I can drive that paladin. I have a class 2 rating."

Ironwood looked genuinely impressed by that statement. "Be my guest." 

Immediately, Summer walked over to the unused paladin unit and strapped herself in. After turning the machine on and doing the necessary procedures to warm the machine up and make sure it was completely functional, she walked the paladin unit over to a box of supplies that needed to be moved. She then used the paladin unit's arms to lift the box. Turning to the two marines, Summer felt a sense of pride when she saw the looks on their faces.

Ironwood was wide-eyed, as if he didn't expect her to know how to work the paladin unit.

Qrow, on the other hand, was smiling. It was Qrow's reaction that she liked the most. 

"Where you want it?" Summer said to the two men. For the first time since emerging from hibernation, she allowed herself to enjoy the moment and started acting smug. Getting to work with paladins, impressing two members of the Atlas military...for once she was having fun.

Qrow and Ironwood chuckled. "Bay 12, please," Ironwood said. 

* * *

Time: Few minutes from dropping down to Hadley's Hope...

The plan was simple; the main airship would hang back several miles away from Hadley's Hope. The reasoning was that if the base had been taken over by something else besides the Grimm, such as the White Fang, then they needed the airship in a secure spot in order to have an escape plan. So to drop down to the settlement, the team would use a smaller bullhead. And by "drop down", it really is one hell of a drop down...over 80,000 feet straight towards the surface. 

With all the necessary gear loaded into the main bullhead, the marines started gearing themselves up for the drop down to the settlement. May Marigold loaded her rifle (the Anesidora Systems M41A Pulse Rifle) while Winter Schnee and Clover Ebi armed themselves with the Atlesian military's signature heavy weapon, the M56 Smartgun aka the "Gianduja". 

Out in the main hangar bay, Caroline Cordovin gave the all-clear signal. Inside the bullhead, pilots Harriet Bree and Vine Zeki strapped themselves to their seats inside the cockpit. Summer Rose could only watch in amazement with how the soldiers were moving. Despite all their antics from earlier, they were all working together like a well-oiled machine. This was how she pictured the soldiers when Mercury and Cordovin had described them back in her apartment. _I guess that's that Atlesian discipline I've been hearing about._

As Mercury joined her side, the two watched as the M577 Armored Personnel Carrier (APC) was driven into the bay by Penny Polendina. In addition to discipline, Summer couldn't help but gawk at the technology she was seeing. The carrier was a clear example of Atlas' brilliant engineering; light enough to quickly move troops in and out of a battlefield but has enough armor to protect the troops inside it. Plus, the APC came equipped with all sorts of mounted weaponry in order to let the troops inside fight back. 

Summer watched as Penny drove up next to her. Awkwardly, the artificial person tried waving at her, as if it was still trying to get on her good side. Summer just elected to ignore Penny and walked away. 

Back in the armory, all the marines were now in full combat gear. As Qrow finished strapping on the last of his gear, Ironwood began moving around the troops. He had a determined look on his face, as if he was itching to get this mission started. 

"All right, sweethearts," Ironwood said excitedly, "We're a team, and there's nothing to worry about. We come here, and we're gonna conquer, and we're gonna kick some. Is that understood? That's what we're gonna do, sweethearts."

"Yes, sir!" most of the marines shouted in response. 

"We are going to go and get some. All right, people! On the ready line! Are you lean?!"

"Yeah!"

"Are you mean?!"

"Yeah!"

"What are you?! I can't hear you, what are you?!"

"Lean and mean!"

Now fully pumped up, the marines started rushing out into the hangar bay. Ironwood was the last to rush out, staying behind to make sure Winchester fell in line (Ironwood: "Winchester! Get on the ready line, marine!). 

"Get some today! Get on the ready line! Move it out. Move it out, goddamn it! Get hot! One, two, three! Get out, get out, get out. Move it out, move it out, move it out. Move it out, move it out, move it out!"

After all the marines gathered at the ready line, Ironwood walked over to them with a big grin on his face. He looked like a proud father, watching his children get to work. 

"Absolutely bad-asses!" he shouted at all of them, "Let's pack 'em in! Get in there!" At that, Ironwood opened the door to the APC, letting the marines enter the vehicle. Penny Polendina waved at each marine as they took their seat. Out of all of them, only Winter Schnee waved back. 

After all the marines made their way inside, Summer Rose awkwardly climbed in to join them. She still felt like the odd one out among the group. Here she was, a regular civilian flight officer, flying with a bunch of tough-as-nails, Atlesian marines. Even though she had been working with the marines for the past few hours, she still felt intimidated by their presence. 

Ironwood closed the doors to the APC as soon as everyone was inside. "All right, I want combat seating," he said, addressing everyone in the vehicle, "You know your places. Get those weapons stowed. Let's go."

As the marines followed Ironwood's orders, Summer and Mercury strapped themselves in. Apparently, they were sitting in the area designated for "civilians". Meanwhile, Caroline Cordovin was seated by a set of computer monitors. Each monitor was displaying camera feed. Upon closer inspection, Summer saw that the feed was coming from each of the marines' helmets. _So Cordovin's monitors allows her to see what the marines are seeing. Makes sense, she is the commanding officer, she needs to know what's going on down in the field._

"Lock 'em in, Winchester!" Ironwood shouted.

Ignoring the sergeant, Cardin gave a few of his fellow soldiers a friendly slap. "Ready to get it on?!" he shouted.

"Aye, you know it!" Marrow Amin said, giving a friendly slap back to Cardin.

With all the soldiers strapped in, Caroline turned to Penny. "Okay, Penny, let's go," the elderly lieutenant said. 

Penny nodded her head at the order. "Roger that, ma'am," she said as drove the APC into the bullhead. The bullhead's doors then closed, ready for takeoff. 

As Summer tried to calm her nerves for the drop into Hadley's Hope, she could hear Cardin continuing to act like a fool around his fellow marines. She closed her eyes, not wanting to be annoyed at the moment. "I'm ready, man," she heard Cardin say, his tone still as smug as ever, "Ready to get it on! Let's go!"

He high-fived Winter Schnee, who somehow managed to look both amused and annoyed at the man's antics. 

After all the marines, including Cardin, strapped themselves in, the intercom came on. The team listened as Harriet Bree began the procedure for the drop down. "Stand by," Harriet said over the intercom, "Cross-locking now. Pre-launch auto cycle engaged."

At that, the bullhead's landing gear was extended up while the first set of blast doors right below it opened. Even though there was still another set of blast doors to open, Summer could already hear the harsh, Solitas tundra wind. From the sound of it, it was a light blizzard. However, a light blizzard in the unexplored north was still considered pretty strong. _I'm really back here...in the unexplored north. Even after everything I went through, I'm back..._

Harriet continued. "Primary couplers released. Hit the internals."

With that, the bullhead started to lower down, going past the first set of blast doors. When the bullhead reached its position, the downward movement instantly stopped, shaking the bullhead and startling everyone inside (Cardin: "Shit, man!").

As Summer regained her bearings, she looked around...and noticed that Qrow Branwen was staring back at her. His face was blank though, she couldn't tell why he was looking at her. _Hmm...what does he want?_

"Confirm cross-lock and drop stations secured," Harriet continued.

"Affirmative," Vine Zeki replied, his voice also carrying through the intercom, "All drop stations secured."

"Stand by. Ten seconds."

After hitting a set of buttons on her dashboard, the second set of blast doors opened. As soon as Harriet did, the sound of the Solitas wind immediately overwhelmed the crew. Right below them was the Solitas tundra. Snow and ice covered the land; whichever direction you looked, you would see nothing but snow and ice. 

"Stand by to initiate release sequencer. On my mark. Five, four, three..." 

Summer took in a deep breath. She hadn't done this type of drop before. Straight down, from the airship right into the tundra. She was by no means afraid of heights but somehow, the idea of dropping straight down was making her feel anxious. It didn't help that one particular marine was having the time of his life. 

"We're on an express elevator to hell, going down!" Cardin Winchester shouted with glee.

_Ugh...that's what this is. An express elevator to hell. Hell being whatever pit the Grimm crawled out of._

With all the procedures out of the way, Harriet readied her finger over the drop button.

"Two...one...mark."

With that, she clicked the button, causing the bullhead to drop straight down from the airship. Summer closed her eyes once again. At that moment, she couldn't tell what was worse; the anxiety and nausea she was feeling from the fact that she was dropping straight down from the airship or the feeling of dread that she was going up against the Grimm once again...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Based on: Aliens (1986) 
> 
> Just a reminder, if you haven't done so already, go over to the "POLL 1" chapter and vote for your favorite of the movie selections! Whichever gets the most votes will be the next full-length, movie-to-RWBY adaptation, right after I finish work on "Grimms".
> 
> AN: So the Winter scene is original to this fic, it doesn't appear in "Aliens". I was thinking that I could do these types of scenes every now and then, not necessarily to pad the story out, but to flesh the characters out, especially since I have the space to do so.


	22. Grimms (Part 3)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summer Rose and the Atlesian marines have arrived at Hadley's Hope. They start their investigation of the area, hoping to find out why Atlas lost contact with the settlement.

CAROLINE CORDOVIN

Setting: Schnee Dust Company, Atlas City

Time: Some time before Mercury and Cordovin talked to Summer about the mission to Hadley's Hope.

"Absolutely not, I can't assign you to this operation. Not without a good reason."

Robyn Hill sighed as she walked down the hallways of the Schnee Dust Company, desperately trying to get away from Lieutenant Caroline Cordovin. She knew what the woman wanted; the leadership position for the mission to Hadley's Hope that was being organized by the bigwigs at Ozpin-Salem. Being a member on Atlas' high council, Robyn knew she could easily recommend Cordovin for the leadership position. However, she didn't want to knowing that there were better, more experienced officers she could choose from. 

_Seriously...she's only a lieutenant at her age? And she has little-to-no actual field experience? This is a joke._

"Councilwoman Hill," Cordovin said, trying to keep up with Robyn, "I must implore you to reconsider. I understand that my resume is lacking-"

"-that is the understatement of the year, Cordovin. How is it that you, being 66-"

"-65, actually."

"Okay, fine, 65. How is it that you, being 65, are only a lieutenant? I could've sworn that the military has a maximum age requirement for officers. Also, why do you barely have any actual experience beyond computer simulations? You understand that all of these reasons are why I'm hesitant to consider you, right?"

That got Cordovin to stop. Robyn stopped moving and turned to Cordovin, wondering what got to her. Cordovin, who looked anxious, took a deep breath, as if she was about to regret what she was going to say.

"Atlas does have a maximum age requirement," Cordovin said, "35 years old. That way, there's a guarantee that officers will serve for at least twenty years."

_Wait...that doesn't make sense. Then how come she's only a lieutenant then? Did she just...never got promoted? And by the law's definition, she shouldn't even have her rank._

"So what gives?" Robyn asked, "How did you get around the age requirement?"

"Well...how much time do you have?"

"Why do you need to know?"

"Because if you want my answer...I need time to tell you the whole story."

_Well...this should be interesting. Now you got my attention._

Robyn agreed to hear Cordovin's story and the two of them settled into an empty conference room to talk. To say that the story got complicated for Robyn was an understatement.

From what Robyn Hill could gather, Cordovin had gone to Atlas Academy with the hopes of becoming an officer. She did everything that she needed to do; she got her education, she went to officer candidate school, and she garnered top marks in everything she did. However, just before she could take the final step in becoming an officer...tragedy struck. And by tragedy, Cordovin meant the White Fang. Apparently, they wanted to send a message to Atlas by launching an attack on the officer academy. 

Cordovin and her fellow classmates fought back. However, in the midst of all the chaos...Cordovin had accidentally killed one of the school's top professors. She had fired at him, thinking he was part of the White Fang. Although the White Fang threat was dealt with, Cordovin had been arrested for her actions. 

Due to her part in defending the school against the White Fang, before news of the professor's accidental death went public, the Atlas government decided to help Cordovin by covering up the crime. The cover story released was that the White Fang was responsible for the professor's murder and Cordovin tried her best to save him. In exchange for the cover-up, she agreed to give up on being an officer in the Atlas military. That would be her true punishment. 

Cordovin had been trying to convince the Atlas government to reconsider their ban for years. It was only now, several decades later, that she had been given a chance. They would let her become an official officer...but only after the successful completion of one mission. They wanted to see if she had what it took to lead a unit. In addition, the high council would have to approve of the mission. 

Now fully understanding why Cordovin was eager to be assigned to Hadley's Hope, Robyn said, "Okay Cordovin...before I do anything with the high council, I need you to answer one question."

"Go ahead."

"Why Hadley's Hope specifically? If Atlas just needs you to finish one mission, why this one? You could've chosen something more simple. Something with less stakes involved. You know, just enough to demonstrate your leadership skills."

"You don't think I considered all that? I want the Hadley's Hope mission because it's a bunch of nonsense that has no real danger. The only reason why Ozpin-Salem want to send military to investigate is that a crazy woman came to them, claiming that a hideous monster in the Solitas tundra wiped out her entire crew. It's honestly more likely that the settlement was lost due to the environment."

"So you don't believe the monster story then?"

"Would you? Summer Rose described it as a creature that is born after emerging from your body, has acid for blood, and can somehow thrive in the unexplored north. It's tripe, it's nonsense...which means this mission will be a piece of cake. All I have to do is direct the troops, have them investigate the area, and when we inevitably declare that there is no monster responsible for destroying the settlement, we'll consider the mission accomplished."

Robyn nodded her head at that, understanding the logic. Although her gut was telling her that there was something more to this story, she couldn't deny that the idea of a monster living in the unexplored north seemed implausible to her. 

"Okay," Robyn said, "I'll talk to the high council. I can't promise you anything but I'll try to get you assigned to Hadley's Hope. I just hope you're right that it's just a bunch of nonsense." 

"Of course I'm right. We'll all be back in Mantle within a few days."

* * *

Setting: Atlesian bullhead, descending towards Hadley's Hope (unexplored northern region of the Solitas tundra)

Time: Moments after dropping from the main airship

Summer Rose had her eyes closed as the bullhead descended straight down from the main airship to the surface. There was so much going on at the same time that she wasn't sure what to focus on; the sound of the harsh wind coming from outside the bullhead, the topsy-turvy feeling in her stomach that made her feel like vomiting, the sounds of grinding metal from the ship quickly falling out of the sky, or Cardin Winchester's loud yelling as if this were a roller coaster. She suppressed the feeling of vomiting and, after a minute, started to feel a little more comfortable. But only a little.

There was a soft _ping_ sound and instantly, Summer recognized it as the intercom that Harriet Bree and Vine Zeki were using to talk to the bullhead passengers. Judging from the calm tone of her voice, this was obviously not Harriet's first bullhead drop. 

"Switch to DCS, ranging," Harriet said. Vine acknowledged what she said and looked to his own monitor.

"240, nominal to profile," Vine replied back. 

"We're in the pipe...five by five."

As the ship got closer to the surface, Harriet started pulling up so that they weren't dropping straight down anymore. Now that they were closer, she could start flying normally. As she did, the bullhead shook. Vine picked up on it but didn't seem too phased. 

"We're picking up some hull ionization," he said to Bree. Harriet nodded at that.

"Got it. Rough air ahead. We're in for some chop." 

Summer's nerve tensed. _Turbulence. Well...that's to be excited with the weather up here._

As expected, the ship started shaking but nothing too outrageous to prompt panic. Even though she wasn't used to these types of drops, Summer was at least used to turbulence. It looked like most of the crew were used to it as well. That is, all except for one; Caroline Cordovin. For a high-ranking lieutenant, Summer was surprised that Cordovin was handling the drop the worst amongst her squad.

She didn't show it but the signs were there; her hands were tightly gripping the armrests of her seat, her eyes were closed, and her facial expression betrayed the fact that she was hating every second of this drop. To Summer, it seemed odd to her that a high-ranking officer wasn't used to an activity that seemed like routine for the Atlesian military. 

"How many drops is this for you, lieutenant?" Summer asked. As soon as the words came out, she found herself regretting them. She didn't want to be the person who questioned the qualifications of the person in charge of keeping everyone safe. But still, her curiosity got to her. 

Cordovin opened her eyes and turned to Summer. For a split second, Summer could've sworn the elderly woman looked embarrassed. 

"38," Cordovin said, "Simulated."

Summer resisted the urge to facepalm. _This is her first live drop? What was she doing before this?_ _Oh lord...so she is a rookie then! But at her age and at her rank...how is she a lieutenant? Did she buy her rank?_

Winter Schnee, who was sitting nearby and listening in on Summer and Cordovin's conversation, frowned at the mention of simulated drops. "How many combat drops?" Winter asked. Cordovin turned to Winter, the look of embarrassment back on her face. 

"Two...including this one."

To say the mood changed in the room would be an understatement. Suddenly, Summer wasn't sure what would kill her first; the Grimm, Penny Polendina once she inevitably malfunctions and goes on a killing spree, or Cordovin's incompetent leadership. The marines (with the exception of Qrow Branwen, who was fast asleep) predictably looked disappointed. Winter turned away, disgusted. Clover Ebi cursed, looking as if he regretted being part of this mission. Meanwhile, Cardin only had two words to say:

"Oh, man."

Summer looked to Mercury Black, hoping he had an explanation for why Ozpin-Salem was entrusting an amateur to handle this operation. All Mercury could do was shrug. _Great...there goes any confidence I had in you people._

/

/

The Atlesian bullhead was now horizontal with the ground. After getting through the turbulence, Harriet began flying normally towards Hadley's Hope. 

"Range 014," Harriet said to Vine, "Turning on final."

/

/

The people in the APC started to relax when the turbulence started to die down and the bullhead slowly started to fly normally. They knew this meant Bree was able to get the bullhead horizontal with the ground, thus stopping the initial downward drop. Still, that didn't mean everyone was 100% relaxed. Most of the passengers still felt tense about the mission in general. 

"And I'm telling you, I got a bad feeling about this drop," May Marigold said as she fidgeted in her seat. Earlier, even though Summer was trying her best not to pay attention, she had picked up on traces of a conversation about how Marigold was sensing misfortune with this particular mission. Greenleaf and Ederne expressed similar sentiments. Marrow Amin, who was sitting nearby, just rolled his eyes at all three of them. 

"You always say that, Marigold," he said, unhappy with the complaining, "You always say, 'I got a bad feeling about this drop'." 

"Okay, okay. When we get back without you I'll call your folks." Marrow resisted the urge to throw the middle finger out at Marigold while May went back to fidgeting in her seat.

Ignoring the arguing marines, Cordovin turned her seat around to the monitors in front of her. Summer kept watch as the lieutenant checked through each one to make sure they were all functional. The monitors were pretty easy to understand; there were eleven monitors, one for each marine (Cordovin was not included since she was an officer who wouldn't see live combat). The main screen had the camera feed coming off of each marines' helmet while the marines' vitals were shown in the top right corner. 

Cordovin, facing the monitors, started going through the usual routine in making sure each marine was accounted for via the monitors. "All right, let's see what we can see," she said as her eyes scanned each marines' assigned monitor, "Everybody online. Looking good-wait, Ebi, check your camera. There seems to be a malfunction."

James Ironwood, who had stood up from his seat to examine the monitors as well, saw what Cordovin was referring to. Clover Ebi's monitor was completely static. Summer then turned to Clover, wondering what the man would do to fix this issue. 

Clover, with a frown on his face, banged his helmet's camera into his seat. Ironwood, Cordovin, and Summer were surprised that somehow worked. _Huh...I thought this was Atlesian tech? I guess even the fancy Atlesians aren't above just hitting things to get them to work._

"That's better," Cordovin said after Clover's monitor returned to normal, "Pan it around a bit."

Annoyed, Clover began swaying his head around. The camera feed, as expected, started to move based on Clover's head movements. "Good, thank you private." 

Despite them getting the machine to work, Summer tensed up when she realized what that truly meant. _The supposedly highly advanced Atlesian tech...malfunctions from time to time. Oh, this just keeps getting better and better._

As Summer began to question the reliability of the marines' tech, Cardin stood up from his seat, much to the annoyance of everyone onboard. He started moving around the aisle, pumped up for the mission as if this was just a vacation to him. 

"I'm ready, man," Cardin said with a big grin on his face, his smugness coming through big time, "Check it out. I am the ultimate badass! State-of-the-badass art. You do not want to fuck with me."

Much to Summer's dismay, Cardin started making his way towards her seat. _Oh god, please go away, please go away, please go away-_

"Check it out," Cardin said as he stood by her. He was way too close, to the point that Summer felt like punching him just for being in her personal space. However, she opted to look away, not wanting to cause a scene.

"Hey, Rose, don't worry," Cardin said to her, his voice starting to truly get on her nerves, "Me and my squad of ultimate badasses will protect you. Check it out." At that, Cardin began to move towards the armory. Summer watched him as he essentially turned into a salesman, highlighting the firepower that would be used against the Grimm. Mercury Black was watching as well, although he looked more entertained by Cardin's sales pitch than Summer. 

"Independently targeting particle-beam phalanx. _WHAP!_ Fry half a city with this puppy. We got tactical smart missiles, phase-plasma pulse rifles, R.P.G.'s. We got sonic, electronic BALL BREAKERS! We got nukes, we got knives, sharp sticks-"

"Okay, knock it off, Winchester," Ironwood shouted from where he was. 

Summer sighed in relief. _If I had to listen to that idiot any longer, I would have had to kill him before the Grimm did it. Okay...that's a bit dark for you Summer. I take that back._

As Winchester made his way back to his seat, Ironwood started addressing the troops. "All right, gear up. Two minutes, people. Get hot. And somebody please wake up Branwen." Ironwood frowned at the sight of Qrow Branwen, still knocked out in his seat. For Summer, she wasn't sure what did him in; the drop from the airship or the booze she saw him drinking earlier. 

The marines started moving into their places. All of them (as well as Qrow when he was woken up by Winter) grabbed their respective weapons, then started crowding around the door to the APC. Outside, the bullhead began slowing down. To the marines, that meant they were right by Hadley's Hope and that Harriet Bree was now looking for a place to land. 

/

/

"Coming around for a 709-er," Harriet said to Vine as she scanned the ground below. 

"Terminal guidance locked in," Vine said back as he looked at his screen.

"Where's the damn beacon?" As if on cue, Hadley's Hope beacon came into view through the cockpit window. "Oh, I see it." 

/

/

Looking at the monitors, Summer's attention was turned to the one whose camera feed was displaying Harriet Bree's. Unlike the other marines, since Harriet was the pilot, her feed was displaying the bullhead's forward view. Seeing what Harriet was seeing, Summer turned to Mercury and asked, "That's the closed ecological system?" She pointed to the structure that had a giant dome shape, like a megaplex version of a greenhouse. 

Mercury nodded his head. "Yep, that's it," he said, "Remarkable piece of machinery. Completely automated. You know, we manufacture those, by the way."

_I wasn't wondering about that but thanks for letting me know...I guess._

As the bullhead descended closer to Hadley's Hope, Cordovin turned on the intercom to talk directly to Bree and Zeki. "Okay, Bree," she said to the Atlesian pilots, "Take us in low over the main settlement complex."

Bree proceeded to do so and from there, Summer and Cordovin were able to start analyzing how the settlement looked. It mostly looked dead. Summer was expecting the area to be thrashed, with buildings destroyed and bodies of dead settlers strewn about. However, it looked like the settlement was just...abandoned. As if all the settlers just vanished. 

_What does this mean? Did the settlers just leave? Or...did the Grimm take them away? Oh lord, this is not good._

"Storm shutters are sealed," Cordovin said as she analyzed the scene on the monitors, "There's no visible activity. All right. Hold at 40."

"Roger," Bree responded. 

"Give me a slow circle of the complex."

Bree then began doing that. Focusing on the giant bio-dome, she started circling around the building in order to let Cordovin analyze the situation. 

From what she could see...nothing seemed out of place. Even Summer had to agree with that assessment.

"Structure seems intact," Summer said, "They still have power." Cordovin nodded at that. 

"Okay, Bree," Cordovin said through the intercom, "Set down on the landing grid. Immediate dust off on my clear, then stay on station." 

With those orders, Bree began the procedures for landing. She made a slow descent down towards the settlement's designated landing zone, then released the bullhead's landing gear. The bullhead touched the ground, rattling the people inside but not to the point that it would cause alarm. 

"Down and clear," Bree said, which was Penny's cue to start moving. 

As soon as the bullhead safely landed, the bullhead's ramp was lowered down, allowing Penny to drive the APC out. She then began driving towards the bio-dome as Bree flew away from the LZ, intending to circle the perimeter and keep the marines informed in case she saw something out of the ordinary. The marines inside the APC all tensed up, realizing that this was it. 

"Ten seconds, people, look sharp," Ironwood ordered, "All right. I want a nice, clean dispersal this time."

The APC stopped in front of the bio-dome. It was showtime. 

"Let's go, move it out!" Ironwood shouted as Penny opened the doors to the APC. Immediately, all the marines exited the vehicle and began moving around. Despite the snow and icy weather, the marines were able to move fast and efficiently. From inside the APC, Summer and Mercury were visibly impressed by how well the soldiers were working as a unit. They may be jokesters and idiots at times but when needed, they could put in the work. 

Winter Schnee led the way, with her Gianduja on standby in case anyone tried to ambush them. At the entrance to the bio-dome, the marines all took defensive positions while Winter stood in front, ready to fire. So far...nothing. Even when Ironwood used a pair of binoculars to scan the area, he couldn't pick up on anything that would constitute a threat. 

Just a whole bunch of snow, empty streets and lit buildings but with no one occupying them. It was a ghost town. 

"First squad up on line," Cordovin said, her eyes firmly glued to the monitors, "Branwen, get yours in accord and watch the rear."

From outside, the soldiers started making moves in accordance to Cordovin's orders. Qrow got his squad (comprised of himself, Clover, Greenleaf, Marigold) ready to move forward while Winter stepped up as part of the first squad (comprised of Ironwood, Winter, Cardin, Elm, Marrow). Ironwood then joined her, preparing to move forward to the bio-dome entrance.

"Schnee, take point," he said to her, "Let's move!" With that, Winter led the way as Ironwood, Winchester, Ederne, and Marrow followed her closely from behind, checking their corners every now and then. After making sure the area was clear, the first squad moved up towards the main blast doors leading into the bio-dome. 

"Move up," Ironwood said as he continued to scan the area. After finishing his scan, he turned to the blast doors and attempted to open them with the nearby door controls. Nothing. Although he wasn't surprised by that since if anyone could get inside without security clearance, then the whole camp would've fallen apart regardless of a Grimm attack. "Winchester, run a bypass," he told to the private. Immediately, Cardin stepped up and began working on the door's controls. Winter and the other marines stood by, guns aimed at the doors in case hostiles were waiting on the other side.

"Second squad, move up," Cordovin said, "Flanking positions."

"Second squad on line," Ironwood replied back, confirming he received Cordovin's orders. Immediately, Qrow Branwen, Clover Ebi, Joanna Greenleaf, and May Marigold moved up in order to support the first squad. Ebi, who was also armed with a Gianduja like Winter, led the way. The soldiers then held firm as they waited for Cardin to finish his bypass. The tension was thick, with each soldier's finger hovering over their respective weapon's trigger. 

_BZZZT!_

There was a sharp crack as Winchester finished bypassing the door's locks. The marines then all heard a soft hum and, slowly, the blast doors to the bio-dome began to open. Winter Schnee tensed up, her fingers ready to pull the trigger on the Gianduja. However, just like the rest of the ghost town, nothing was inside. 

Ironwood nodded his head to Schnee. After determining it was at least safe to go inside the lobby, he gestured to Schnee to take point. Winter then moved forward into the building, the rest of the first squad following closely behind. Qrow and his squad stayed back, awaiting further orders.

It was all too easy. But still, Summer couldn't help but feel unnerved by the situation. Since the town was so quiet, all she could hear was the sound of the Solitas wind, harshly blowing everything in its path. The more she listened to the wind, the more she was reminded of her time in this area. How even with the sound of the wind present, the area was somehow quiet. She wanted to hear anything else besides the wind, something that indicated that there was human or faunus life in this area. But...there was nothing. Just the wind. 

Inside the base, the first squad all turned on their shoulder lights. Although the building's lights were on outside, all the indoor lights were either off or dim. Everyone was tense as they scanned the area, looking for either hostiles or settlers. So far, nothing. 

Ironwood and Cardin made their way to another set of doors. Not blast doors but the normal security doors for hallways of buildings of this type. The doors were slightly open, which seemed odd since there was nothing blocking the doors to keep them open. Ironwood moved to one side while Cardin moved to the other. They then grabbed their respective door and prepared to force them open. Winter stood in between them, her weapon aimed right down the middle, ready to blast anything on the other side. 

"You set?" Ironwood whispered to Cardin. Cardin nodded and, after silently counting to 3, both men pulled the doors open. From there, the marines finally got their first sign that something bad happened to the settlement. Winter, who had been standing right in front of the door, couldn't help but gasp at what she saw.

The entire ground was drenched in water, as if a pipe had burst open. 

Wires that had been "slashed" apart were strewn all over the ceiling.

The hallway was littered with debris and trash, as if a storm had blown through this area. 

The walls were scorched with what the marines recognized as signs of gunfire. 

Last but not least, the ground and ceiling were riddled with holes. 

Slightly disturbed, the marines moved forward. They had no choice but to do so.

From inside the APC, Summer steadied her breathing as she saw what the marines were seeing. The more she saw of the base, the more she thought of what happened to her and the rest of the Nostromo crew. _What happened here? Please tell me there's an explanation for this besides the Grimm._ Mercury and Cordovin were also surprised by what they were seeing but chose to keep that to themselves. 

"Second team, move inside," Cordovin said through the radio, "Branwen, take the upper level." Outside the bio-dome, Qrow acknowledged the order and moved his squad inside. Now, all the marines were inside the bio-dome.

Back with Winter and Ironwood's unit, their squad kept moving through the hallway, still disturbed by what they were seeing. The scene just seemed to get worse and worse as they kept on encountering more trash, more signs of gunfire, and more destroyed wires and pipes. Just going from experience, Ironwood only had one explanation for all of this;

There was a battle here. 

"Ma'am, you copying this?" Ironwood said to Cordovin through his radio, "Look at the walls. Those look like hits from small-arms fire. We got some explosives damage. It's probably seismic...survey charges. Are you reading this? Keep it tight, people."

Summer was seeing this as well. More and more, her gut was telling her that this was not a normal attack. This had to have been the Grimm. But what she couldn't figure out was, if this was the Grimm...where was it now? Also, if the settlers all fought back with firearms and explosives, how did this thing still manage to wipe them out? _Are there more than one of them this time? No...don't think like that. Don't jump to conclusions just yet._

As Ironwood's crew moved further down the first level of the bio-dome, Qrow, Clover, and the rest of the second squad made their way upstairs to the second floor. Qrow led the way while Clover stayed close behind as support. Summer turned her attention to Qrow's monitor to see if the second floor was any different. 

"All right," Cordovin said to the marines, "Branwen, Winchester, use your motion trackers." 

Cardin and Qrow did just that. Both men lowered their rifles and instead grabbed their motion tracking devices that were also slung across their necks. Looking at their respective device's monitor, both men began tracking movements for anything that wasn't them. In order to make sure they wouldn't accidentally read each other, the monitors were pre-set to recognize the marines and all civilian personnel who were part of the mission, thus not displaying them on the screen. Because of that, both Cardin and Qrow's motion trackers weren't picking up on anything in the area. 

"Nothing," Qrow said after giving his area one more scan, "Not a goddamn thing."

Summer sighed out of relief. It wasn't much but for now, they didn't have to worry about the Grimm. If there was one of those creatures in Hadley's Hope, they were at least not in the bio-dome at the moment. 

"Quarter and search by twos," Cordovin said. 

Ironwood, hearing the order, snapped at his squad. Immediately, the marines in his squad split into three groups; Ironwood went off with Elm Ederne, Marrow Amin went to search on his own, and Cardin stuck with Winter Schnee.

With Qrow, he turned to his squad and said, "Okay. Greenleaf, Marigold, you're up." His squad then split, Clover sticking with him while Joanna and May went off into a different hallway.

Due to the marines splitting up, Cordovin, Summer, and Mercury had a hard time keeping track of everyone. However, the story was the same for each one; nothing. Despite how tense the situation was, none of the marines were picking up on any intruders or surviving settlers. 

That was...until they heard it.

_Beep...beep...beep...beep...beep..._

Summer's heart stopped when she heard Cardin's motion tracker start picking up on something. It could've been anything; a person, an animal...or a Grimm. Cordovin and Mercury heard this too, their eyes immediately moving right to Cardin and Winter's screens. 

Cardin gestured to Winter. Whatever it was that he was picking up on, it was coming from inside a room to their left. Winter moved into position while Cardin peeked through the open door crack to see if there was anything inside. When he saw nothing inside, he turned to Winter.

"It's right in there," he whispered, "I can't see it but...the tracker is picking up on something."

Summer held her breath. She watched as Cardin push the doors open with his legs, allowing Winter to quickly move inside. Immediately, they went to a different door inside the room. The signal was coming from the other side. They could tell due to the tracking device picking up speed. 

_Beep-beep-beep-beep-beep-beep-beep-beep-_

Winter turned to Cardin. This was the moment of truth. 

"Now?" Cardin whispered.

"Now!" Winter shouted back. Suddenly, Cardin kicked the door open and the two marines rushed into the room. Cardin even let out a loud battle cry, hoping to scare whatever it was inside.

For a moment, Summer's heart stopped from sheer anxiety. However, when she saw what it was that was being picked up by the tracking device, she relaxed instantly. 

Mice. They were in some sort of playset, indicating that this was someone's pet mice. 

Winter groaned in annoyance, having been worked up for nothing. "Good one, Winchester," she snarked to the man, "You caught the Grimm. But it looks like someone already tamed the damn thing before we got here."

Cardin rolled his eyes at that. "Ma'am, we have a negative situation here," he said to Cordovin through the radio, "Moving on, ma'am."

/

/

Back with Qrow and Clover, the two men made their way down a hallway. Qrow was still not picking up anything with his motion tracker but regardless, he kept his guard up. Just as he was about to turn a corner, Summer immediately noticed something on his camera feed. It was the ground where the marines noticed signs of gunfire and explosive residue. She couldn't tell from where she was but something about one of the blast marks seemed...off. Like it wasn't a blast mark at all. 

"Wait," Summer said, catching Cordovin's attention, "Wait, tell him to..." Summer, realizing she could just talk to him directly since she was at the monitors, grabbed a nearby pair of headsets and began speaking into the mic. "Branwen, back up. Pan right."

Qrow, hearing Summer's request, stopped what he was doing and backed up. He then turned his head right, allowing Summer to get a full glimpse of what she had noticed earlier. When she did, she grew tense again. It was the first clear sign that the Grimm was involved. 

"There," Summer whispered. Mercury and Cordovin leaned in to try to figure out what Summer was seeing while Qrow (seen through Clover Ebi's camera feed) kneeled down to further examine the spot in question. It was a hole, bigger than what a regular rifle could make but smaller than what an explosion would leave behind. The pieces also looked...dissolved. As if something was eating away at the metal. Summer knew all too well what that meant. 

"You seeing this all right?" Qrow asked, "Looks melted. Somebody must have bagged one of Rose's bad guys here."

"Acid for blood," Mercury whispered. Summer turned to him and saw that he was just as surprised as she was. 

Suddenly, Cardin, who had been listening in on their conversation, started speaking into his radio. "If you like that," he said, "You're gonna love this. Check out either mine or Ice Queen's monitors if you want to be amazed." 

_What does he mean by that?_ Curious, Summer turned her attention to Winter Schnee's camera feed to see what he was talking about. She nearly gasped when she saw it.

Another hole, this one much larger, coming from the ceiling. Like the hole that Qrow was examining, the sides to this one were also dissolved by some acidic material. Then, when Cardin looked down, Summer saw that whatever melted the ceiling hole went on to melt the floor beneath it.

And the floor beneath that one.

And the floor beneath that one as well. As if whatever melted the top floor just kept dissolving its way through the floors beneath it. 

_PTOOEY!_

Summer, Mercury, Cordovin, Winter, and Ironwood all nearly facepalmed themselves when Cardin spat down the dissolved holes just to see if he could reach the bottom. Annoyed by the grunt's behavior, Winter nudged him. He nearly tripped over the hole just from the slight push.

"Hey, quit screwing around," he growled at Winter.

"Says the guy spitting loogies while we're on duty," Winter snapped back at him.

"Alright, settle down you two," Ironwood interrupted before Cardin could snap back, "Second squad, what's your status?"

There was a brief delay as the group awaited Qrow's response. Then, after a brief _bzzt_ sound from Qrow reaching for his radio, he said, "We just finished our sweep. Nobody's home."

"Roger that. Ma'am, this place is dead. Whatever happened here, I think we missed it."

Cordovin sighed, acknowledging what Ironwood said. Truthfully, she had been expecting the group to come across something, anything. But if the place was as truly dead as how the marines were reporting it, then she had no reason to think there was anyone else in the bio-dome.

"All right," Cordovin said, addressing the entire squad, "The area's secured. Let's go in and see what their computer can tell us."

That immediately set off red flags for Summer. She wasn't an expert on the Grimm by any means but even she knew that just because they didn't find it in the area didn't ensure that the area was safe. She knew just how stealthy these creatures could be...especially considering how they took out Captain Raven. 

/

/

_"MOVE RAVEN, MOVE!"_

_The crew of the Nostromo could only stand by as Raven tried her best to navigate through the settlement's ventilation systems. Sienna Khan had picked up on the Grimm's presence through her motion tracking device and it was swiftly closing in on her._

_Summer tried her best not to worry but judging from how fast the Grimm was moving, she was worried that Raven wouldn't make it to the exit ducts in time._

_Sienna was full on panicking as she tried to give Raven directions on how to get back to the crew. Pietro tried to calm her down but nothing seemed to be working. Suddenly, Raven's signal indicated she was moving down a different shaft, one that didn't lead back to the crew. Immediately, Sienna picked up on this and tried to get Raven to turn around._

_"NO, NOT THAT WAY RAVEN, THE OTHER WAY-"_

**_"BRAHHHHHHHH"_ **

_Everyone was silent. Raven's signal disappeared. Either she was still alive and her tracking device was just destroyed or...the creature got her. Sienna could've sworn that the Grimm was further away. Yet it somehow managed to sneak up on Raven._

_But at that moment, the crew was more focused on what they just heard through the vents. Whatever that sound was, it didn't come from Raven. That noise just now, it sounded...inhuman._

_That was the first time that the crew heard the Grimm. And that sound would haunt them for the rest of their lives._

_/_

_/_

"Wait a minute, it's not secure," Summer tried to complain to Cordovin. Cordovin simply waved her off as if she was nothing. 

"The area's secured, Rose," Cordovin said firmly, ending that discussion. Summer groaned but decided not to question the lieutenant's orders. "First team, head for operations. Winchester, see if you can get their C.P.U. on line."

"Affirmative," Cardin said.

"Branwen, meet me at the south lock. We're coming in."

"Roger," Qrow quickly said. (Cardin, with his radio off: "She's coming in. I feel safer already." / Winter, with her radio off: "Cardin, you're a fucking jerk-off, you know that?")

* * *

Time: Few minutes later

With the area supposedly secure, Penny Polendina drove the APC up to the entrance of the bio-dome. She then opened the doors, allowing Cordovin, Mercury, and Summer to exit the vehicle and head inside. The three of them were all in snow gear due to the blistering cold of the Solitas tundra. As Summer and Mercury made their way inside, Cordovin heard Winchester say through the radio, "Ma'am, we got the C.P.U. on line. No problem."

"Good," Cordovin shouted so that Cardin could hear her over the wind, "Stand by in operations! Okay, let's go." 

Mercury Black didn't think twice; he immediately moved inside to get out of the cold. However, Summer stopped as soon as she got to the entrance. It didn't hit her back when she was in the APC but now that she was standing in front of the bio-dome's entrance, she suddenly realized that she was terrified.

There was a possible Grimm threat in this area. The very thing that has been haunting her in her dreams, keeping her awake at night. Now, it wasn't just a figment of her imagination. There was a real chance that another Grimm was either inside or stalking them from outside the settlement. 

_What are you doing, Summer? You could've just stayed home with Zwei. Why did you have to come back to this godforsaken place?_

"Are you all right?" 

Summer stopped panicking for a second when she saw Qrow Branwen standing before her, looking concerned for her well-being. She didn't register what he said at first but as soon as she did, she started to feel relieved. 

"Yes, I'm fine," Summer said. 

"That's good to hear. Now come on, let's get out of the cold." With that, Summer made her way inside. The marines then closed the blast doors behind them to keep the cold air outside. 

_Qrow Branwen...hmm...he needs a new nickname. The "sleepy one" doesn't fit him. How about...the "nice one". Or the "cute one"-no, come on Summer, get your head out of the gutter._

/

/

Moving further into the bio-dome, the marines had made a huge discovery. Blocking one of the main hallways was a pile of junk. Computer monitors, beds, tables, kitchen supplies...they were all stacked on top of each other. Although they couldn't say with 100% certainty, the marines assumed the settlers tried to barricade themselves in the center of the bio-dome.

Caroline Cordovin made her way through the barricade after finding a gap in the debris. She looked amazed by the act, mainly because it confirmed that the settlers were indeed trying to defend themselves from something. Meanwhile, Summer Rose was thinking the same thing, but she was also hoping that the settlers succeeded. 

"Ma'am," Clover Ebi said as he approached Cordovin, "They sealed off this wing at both ends, welded the doors and blocked off the stairs with heavy equipment. But it looks like the barricade didn't hold."

"Any bodies?" Cordovin asked. 

"No, ma'am." 

"Last stand," May Marigold said as she observed the barricade, "Must have been a hell of a fight."

"Yeah, looks that way," Qrow said, not liking the implications of that.

"All right, Ebi, this way," Cordovin said as she pointed down the hallway, "We should be able to cut through the Medlab to operations." 

Clover took point as the others followed closely behind. Approaching the Medlab area, Clover kept his guard up as he moved in, checking his corners every now and then. On a closer inspection, although the Medlab was not as torn up as the rest of the bio-dome, there were still clear signs of a struggle. One of the lights was dangling by a thread, apparently having been knocked down by something. There was trash everywhere and several tables were missing. Summer, having noticed that there were tables used in the barricade, assumed that they had been taken from the Medlab. 

As the group moved further down the Medlab, Summer turned to her right...and saw something that sent shivers down her spine.

_No...no...so I was right. Goddamit, I was right. This was the Grimm's doing. These poor people..._

There were at least three glass containers that had the creature inside them. They were all floating in what was either water or some kind of solution. Although it has been a while since she has seen the parasite, she still recognized the creatures as the thing that had clung onto Taiyang Xiao Long's face and implanted the Grimm within his body. But this time, there was more than one. They all looked dead from where she was standing, which didn't bother her. What truly bothered her was just the fact that the settlers found the parasites in the first place. 

Summer approached the containers, Qrow following her closely from behind. Although she couldn't see his reaction, she heard him whisper, "Holy shit" as he saw the parasites. She assumed he was just as shocked and surprised as she was. 

Qrow then called Cordovin and the others over to inspect the Grimm parasites. Just like Qrow, they all had the same look of shock as soon as they saw the glass containers. For Summer, she felt slightly vindicated. Finally, she had proof of the Grimm. She just wished it didn't take losing a whole settlement in order to get that proof. 

Mercury Black turned to Summer, his face indicating that he was having a hard time comprehending all of this. "Are those the same ones that..." He trailed off when Summer nodded her head. _Yes. The same ones. Ozpin-Salem wanted proof of the Grimm...there's your proof._

Wanting to get a closer look at the creatures, Mercury moved his way towards the containers. Summer watched as the man looked in at the parasites, then leaned in to analyze their features. For Summer, even if these parasites weren't a threat, he was still a bit too close to the container for comfort.

"Careful, Mercury," Summer said. Mercury turned to her with a face that indicated he wasn't sure why she was panicking. Then...the parasite gave him a reason to panic.

_THUNK!_

Everyone jumped when the parasite that Mercury was examining suddenly attacked the walls of the container, trying to get ahold of the man. Of all the parasites in the Medlab, this was the only one that showed signs of life. To Summer, she cringed as she watched the parasite slobber all over the container, trying to push through the glass to no avail. It reminded her of what happened to Taiyang, how the same type of parasite had wrapped itself around his face.

"Looks like love at first sight to me," Qrow joked as he watched the Grimm parasite squirm around in its container, "Oh, he likes you, Black." 

Mercury nervously laughed as he walked away from the parasites. 

On the other side of the room, Cordovin and Penny were examining the logs kept by the Medlab technicians. From where they were standing, they had found even more containers with the Grimm parasites. Just like the parasites in Summer's area, most, if not all, of them were dead.

After quickly scanning through all of the settlers' logs regarding the parasites, Penny said, "Two are alive. The rest are dead. 'Surgically removed before embryo implantation. Subject Chloris, Reese J., died during the procedure.' They killed her taking it off."

_Beep...beep....beep...beep...beep...beep..._

"Oh, you gotta be kidding me...yo, Branwen!"

Everyone in the Medlab immediately turned their attention to May Marigold, who was looking at her motion tracker. It had caught something moving around. 

"I think we got something here," Marigold continued, keeping her eyes firmly on the tracker. Like a switch, the marines went into attack mode. 

Qrow walked over to Marigold to look at the signal. "It's behind us," he said.

"One of us?" Summer asked. 

Qrow shook his head for no. "Can't be, the trackers won't pick up on anyone part of this operation."

"But what if the device is malfunctioning?"

Cordovin looked at Summer. Just to confirm that wasn't the case, she then turned to her radio and said, "Ironwood, where are your people? Anybody in 'D' block?"

"That's a negative," Ironwood's voice came through, "We're all in Operations."

 _Well that's not good._ Summer started sweating. It was starting all over again. 

The marines, recognizing the threat, began moving towards the signal. Clover Ebi led the way while May Marigold guided the group. Qrow stayed behind Marigold to provide support. Everyone else followed the three marines. 

"Talk to me, Marigold," Clover said, his nerves tense as he scanned the area with his Gianduja. 

"Let's keep moving, baby," Marigold said back. And so the group moved forward, trying to keep up with the signal.

_Beep...beep...beep...beep...beep...beep..._

_Beep...beep...beep...beep...beep...beep..._

_Beep...beep...beep...beep...beep...beep..._

_Beep...beep...beep...beep...beep...beep...THUNK!_

Summer nearly screamed when a couple of binders slid off a nearby table. Angry, she looked behind her to see who did it.

Unsurprisingly, Mercury turned away, pretending he didn't just bump his leg against the table, causing the binders to drop. 

Turning back to the signal, Qrow, Clover, and Marigold all noticed something about their target.

"It's moving," Qrow said, not liking the implications of that. 

"Well, which way?" Clover asked. 

Looking at the dot, Marigold couldn't believe it. "It's coming straight for us. Straight up."

Against their better judgment, the marines decided to move towards the signal. Instead of running, they were going to meet it head-on and deal with it then. The signal led them outside the Medlab and back into the main hallway. 

Still nothing. However, the tracker indicated that whatever this mystery thing was, it was in the area. They just couldn't see it. Qrow was about to call off the investigation when...all of a sudden...

_SWOOOOOSH!_

"GRAHHHH!" Clover shouted as he accidentally opened fire, his finger having been hovering over the trigger. If it weren't for Qrow pushing Clover's gun away, whatever it was that moved would've been smoked by now.

Something in front of the group had quickly moved away. It was too dark to see and it moved too fast for anyone to get a good look at it. Summer's ears were ringing from the sudden gunfire. As she regained her composure, the marines started moving forward, now all pissed off at whatever it was that was creating the signal. 

"Fuck!" Clover shouted as he caught his breath. 

"Hold up!" Qrow said, frowning that the man just gave their position away with his gunfire. Turning to their resident Grimm expert, Qrow said, "Rose", then gestured over to a nearby air duct.

Summer internally groaned, not wanting to be in this position. Regardless, she joined Qrow's side to help him out. The two crouched and looked into the duct to see what it was that moved. Summer was praying fiercely that it wasn't a Grimm but at this point, she was expecting it to be the signal. When she looked in, she could've sworn that her prayers were actually heard by someone.

Inside the duct was a little girl. She couldn't have been more than 12 or 13 years old. Judging by the cat ears, Summer assumed she was a cat faunus. The girl's black hair was messy, possibly a sign that she had been in danger recently. Her face was covered in soot and, even though she couldn't quite tell from where she was crouching, she could see that the girl was holding onto a doll. The girl look frightened. Summer couldn't blame her; Clover did just fire several gunshots out of fear. 

The group all started smiling. It was a survivor. Even though she was just a kid, the group was secretly hoping that this girl could tell them what happened to Hadley's Hope. Qrow then began reaching into the duct to reach the kid while Summer, with her motherly instincts kicking in, tried her best to calm the child down. 

"Hey, it's all right," she said to the cat faunus, "It's all right. Come on-"

"Just grab her, corporal," Cordovin said bluntly. Summer tried her best not to be annoyed by the lieutenant's insensitive tone and kept her focus on calming the kid down. 

"Don't be afraid," Summer continued, "Come on. We won't hurt you. It's all right. It's okay. Come on out. Come on. Easy. Easy."

As the girl was starting to relax, Qrow managed to grab the cat faunus' hand. Immediately, she started panicking.

"I got her-OW! DAMN!" Qrow pulled his hand back as the little girl bit down on him. She then scurried away, moving further into the vents. Immediately, the group started moving around, trying to keep up with the girl. 

"Watch her!" Cordovin shouted at her fellow marines. 

"Don't let her go!" Summer shouted as well. Qrow, Clover, and Marigold did their best to comply but the girl was moving fast.

"She's under the grille," Qrow said as he watched the girl scurry underneath their feet, "Fuck, she's getting away! Marigold, get your light up here!"

"Where'd she go?" Summer shouted as she lost track of the cat faunus. 

Marigold moved into place and started shining her shoulder light down onto the floor, allowing the group to see through the metal grille. "Come on, shine the light," Qrow commanded. 

As soon as Marigold's light shined over the cat faunus, the girl began moving the other direction. This time, with the lights on her, the group was able to keep up with the girl.

"There she is!" Marigold shouted as she kept the light on the girl. 

"Keep back," Summer shouted back, "Keep back! Don't scare her!"

"Grab her, man, or we're gonna lose her!" Qrow shouted at Marigold. 

However, it was too late. The little girl managed to move away from the hallway floors, find another duct and moved out of sight from the group. 

"Damn it!" Summer shouted. Frustrated, she dropped her gear, then moved towards the same duct that the girl had run into before. The marines watched as Summer crawled inside. Due to the marines carrying heavy gear and weaponry, they all opted to stay behind since they couldn't fit inside the vent. 

The air duct led into a separate room. Although Summer wasn't quite sure what the purpose of this smaller room was, by the looks of it, she assumed that this was either the trash chute or where the settlers stored their recyclables. The girl tried moving away from Summer but it was clear there was no other way to escape.

"Wait!" Summer shouted. As soon as the girl heard her, she stopped moving and hid in a corner of the room. Summer, with her flashlight in her hand, shined it over the girl. The girl looked terrified to the point that she was about to start crying. 

_Poor thing...just what exactly have you been through?_ As Summer moved in, she started noticing more and more details about this supposed trash chute. Aside from the thrown out boxes and empty bins, she also saw MREs, bottles of water, and other boxes full of supplies needed for survival. That piqued Summer's interest. _Is this the girl's hideout from the Grimm? God...how long has she been living like this? And how did she manage to survive this long?_

"Hey, it's okay," Summer said as she approached the terrified girl, "It's all right. Don't be afraid. See-"

_SWOOOSH!_

The little girl tried moving away, this time to a vent that Summer didn't even notice. But before the girl could escape, Summer managed to grab her. The girl tried to squirm away but Summer held strong. She clung onto her as if her life depended on it. 

"Wait! No, just calm down now! It's okay! You're gonna be all right now. Easy. Easy. It's gonna be okay. It's all right. You're gonna be okay. Easy. Easy."

The girl stopped fighting after a while. Mostly, she had tired herself out. Summer sighed in relief as the girl relaxed. 

As Summer held the girl in her arms, something in the corner of her eyes caught her attention. While keeping her grip on the girl, Summer reached over and grabbed what looked like a picture frame. Holding it to her face, she saw that it was a picture of the little girl. She looked happy in the picture, well-dressed as well, indicating this was for some formal event.

The frame had a caption: **Second Grade Citizenship Award - BLAKE BELLADONNA**

_Blake...your name is Blake._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Based on: Aliens (1986)
> 
> Just a reminder, if you haven't done so already, go over to the "POLL 1" chapter and vote for your favorite of the movie selections! Whichever gets the most votes will be the next full-length, movie-to-RWBY adaptation, right after I finish work on "Grimms".
> 
> AN: So...uh...for anyone who's seen this movie, you probably know what scene's coming next. For those who haven't seen "Aliens"...let's just say, things are about to go from 0 to 100.


	23. Grimms (Part 4)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With the Atlesian marines making camp in Hadley's Hope, the group begins their search for the missing settlers. They quickly realize that there is something brewing underneath the surface...

Setting: Medlab, Hadley's Hope bio-dome

Time: A few hours after finding Blake...

Despite the damage done to the base, the marines were able to get most of the systems running again. The bio-dome was mostly intact, judging from how the plants that were being grown in the greenhouse area were still being maintained by Ozpin-Salem's systems. Even the shutters at the main operations room were working, which Qrow found out after lowering them. By lowering the shutters, the group was able to get a full view of Hadley's Hope. Snow covered all the buildings in the area and, despite the settlement losing 99.9% of its population, lights were still on, giving the impression that the area was still alive and well. 

As Summer Rose made a cup of hot chocolate for herself, using a coffee maker she found in the Medlab area, the marines were tending to their newest member, Blake Belladonna. Ever since Summer brought her out of the vent, the girl had been mute, unresponsive to the group's questions about the settlement. Summer couldn't blame the girl; she herself was a survivor of a Grimm attack and she still has nightmares about that incident. If she, a grown adult, had nightmares about the Grimm, there was no telling what the child was going through. 

At the moment, Caroline Cordovin and Joanna Greenleaf were trying to get through to the girl. Summer stood by and watched. She knew that they wouldn't succeed but, on the off chance they did, she wanted to be there to support the girl.

"What's her name again?" Cordovin huffed as she circled the cat faunus. From her tone, she was clearly losing her patience. Summer wasn't too happy with her attitude but kept to herself. _This isn't an interrogation, lighten up._

"Blake," Greenleaf said as she was packing some medical gear away. The marines had been using the equipment to make sure Blake was okay. Based on the tests that the marines had ran on the girl earlier, she was unharmed and, for the most part, healthy. 

"Now think, Blake. Concentrate. Just...start at the beginning. Where are your parents?"

Blake didn't respond. All Cordovin got back was a blank stare into nothing. Summer knew that stare all too well. 

Cordovin groaned, now letting her frustration show. "Now, look, Blake, you have to try and help-"

"-Cordovin, give it a rest, why don't you?" Summer interrupted. _The kid's clearly not going to respond to you, how's yelling at her going to change things?_

Cordovin sighed and backed away, giving up on trying to reach the girl. "Total brain lock."

"Physically, she's okay," Greenleaf added, "Borderline malnutrition, but I don't think there's any permanent damage."

"Come on. We're wasting our time." With that, both Cordovin and Greenleaf walked away to handle other issues with the base.

Now alone with the girl, Summer took a seat. The girl's expression didn't change, even with the marines away from the scene. It was at this point that Summer wasn't sure what to do. Sure, she was no stranger to kids but she didn't know how to talk to someone who had been through so much trauma. _Oh, Brothers...dealing with Ruby was so much easier. All I had to do was offer her cookies when I was having trouble with her._

Still, feeling bad for the girl, Summer decided to try reaching her, regardless of the marines' failure to do so. 

Thinking back to how she would handle Ruby, Summer gently took Blake's hand and had her grip the cup of hot cocoa. "Try this," Summer said, "It's a little hot chocolate."

Nothing. Blake just kept staring out into the distance, as if Summer wasn't there. _Okay...let's try being a little more...forward._

Using only soft, gentle movements, Summer guided Blake's hand to her mouth. Although Blake didn't respond at first, she started sipping the hot chocolate once the cup reached her lips. Summer smiled at that; it wasn't much but at least she knew Blake was responding to her. 

"There you go," Summer said with a smile on her face. As Summer pulled the cup away, a dribble of hot cocoa dripped down the sides of Blake's mouth. Summer took the cup away, then grabbed a nearby towel to clean Blake's mouth.

"Whoops. It was that good, huh? Uh oh...I made a clean spot on this side of your face. Now I've done it. Guess I'll have to do the whole thing."

Summer then started using the towel to clean up the rest of Blake's face. Blake continued to stare out in the distance as Summer got rid of all the soot and dirt stains. The towel wasn't enough to completely clean her up but at the very least, she was starting to look more presentable than before. 

"Hard to believe there's a little girl under all this," Summer said as she continued cleaning Blake, "And a pretty one too. You don't talk much, do you?"

No response. _Well...I'm off to a great start._

* * *

Setting: Operations room, Hadley's Hope bio-dome

Time: Shortly after Cordovin left Summer and Blake...

In the main operations room, Qrow, Cardin, and Mercury were looking through the files on Hadley's Hope through one of the nearby terminals. They were looking for anything that could help them in their investigation; maps of the area, settlers' logs, officer reports, and so on. Cordovin joined them, much to the chagrin of Qrow. He didn't let it show but Cardin noticed that the man turned away as soon as the lieutenant joined them.

Cardin, with a big, smug grin on his face, turned to the lieutenant and asked, "Smoking or non-smoking?"

Cordovin was unsure by what the doofus meant by that but, assuming that he was talking about the cat faunus, rolled her eyes. Although she was initially happy to find a survivor, the fact that she was unresponsive to all of her questions did not sit well with her. It was great she survived whatever disaster happened in this base but, when it came to the investigation, she was of no use.

"Just tell me what you're scanning for, private," Cordovin quickly snapped at Cardin. Cardin backed off, then turned back to the computer terminal. He gestured to Mercury to answer Cordovin's question.

"P.D.T.s," Mercury Black said.

"What's that?"

"Personal data transmitters. Every settler had one surgically implanted."

"If they're within 20 clicks, we'll read it out here," Cardin added, "So far, zippo."

Cordovin groaned. No progress with the little girl, now no progress with finding the rest of the settlers. This was supposed to be an easy, short mission. She hated the fact that there were so many obstacles popping up. 

* * *

Setting: Medlab 

After a few minutes spent wiping Blake's face, Summer managed to get Blake to a point where she didn't look like she had been living in a trash chute for the past few weeks. Although her hair was still a wild mess and there were traces of dirt stains left on her face, Blake at least looked presentable. Summer smiled at her work; it was a small gesture, but she knew that cleanliness could do wonders for someone's mental health. 

Still, even with all that, Blake continued to stare out into the distance. She didn't look sad or distressed; instead, she just looked...blank. That was what worried Summer, the fact that she couldn't tell what the girl was thinking. She didn't have this problem with Ruby. With Ruby, Summer could easily tell what her daughter was thinking since her face always gave her away. But with Blake...nothing. 

_What am I going to do with you? Please Blake, give me a sign. I'll take anything at this point._

"I don't know how you managed to stay alive," Summer said, unsure where she was going with this train of thought, "But you're one brave kid, Blake-"

"-S...Sh...Sha...Shadow."

Summer stopped. That was the first thing Blake said since Summer found her in the vent. _Oh my god...she actually spoke! I got through to her! But...what did she say? Shadow?_

"What'd you say?" Summer asked. 

Blake slightly turned her head to look at Summer. "Shadow. My name's Shadow. Nobody calls me Blake...except my brother."

Summer smiled at that. "Shadow" was Blake's nickname. It was cute; it reminded Summer of the time when Ruby wanted to be called "the Summer Maiden". Ruby would then claim that she came up with her hero name based on her two favorite heroes; the Maiden, who was the main protagonist of her favorite TV show, and her mother. It was such a little kid thing to do. 

"Shadow? I like that. I'm Rose. It's nice to meet you."

Turning to Blake's other hand, Summer saw that she was still holding the doll from before. Gently, she raised Blake's hand, then pointed to the doll. "And who is this?"

"Her name is Ilia. Ilia Amitola. She's the hero of a cartoon I watch on the weekends."

 _Wow...just like Ruby._ "Hello, Ilia. It's nice to meet you. Now...what about your brother? What's his name?"

"Timmy."

"Is Timmy around here too? Maybe hiding like you were?"

Blake slowly looked away, uncomfortable at the question. Not wanting to lose the girl, Summer decided to change the topic. "Any sisters?"

Blake nodded her head for no. 

"How about mom and dad?"

Blake nodded her head for yes. 

At that, Summer gently lifted Blake's head. She knew this next question was risky but she needed to ask it. "Shadow, look at me. Where are they?"

Up until this point, Blake had been talking barely above a whisper. This time, she answered Summer at full volume, startling her. "They're dead, all right? Can I go now?"

Summer sighed. Part of her had a feeling that was going to be the answer. Still, she needed to know. That was why she was with the marines in the first place, they needed to know what happened to the people here. It didn't make her feel good badgering Blake but at least she was talking now. 

"I'm sorry, Shadow," Summer said. Focusing on what Blake said about wanting to leave, Summer said, "Don't you think you'd be safer here with us?" 

Surprisingly, Blake nodded her head for no.

"These people are here to protect you. They're soldiers."

"It won't make any difference."

* * *

KALI BELLADONNA

Setting: Agricultural section, Hadley's Hope bio-dome (greenhouse area)

Time: Some time after Ghira was attacked by the Grimm parasite but before the Atlesian marines arrived... 

"This was a mistake." 

Kali Belladonna couldn't believe her eyes as Vernal's crew came back from the cave. Although she specifically told the crew not to bring any of the eggs back, there they were with at least a dozen of them. The crew began placing the eggs in an open area, away from the main crops. After seeing what happened to her husband, the last thing she wanted to see was more of the cave eggs.

As of now, Ghira is still undergoing surgery to remove the parasite from his face. The settlement's lead surgeons, Melanie Malachite and her sister Miltiades, were having a tough time removing the thing since every attempt they made at cutting into the creature resulted in it harming Ghira.

When they tried cutting into the parasite, they noticed that the creature prepared to seep acid into Ghira's mouth. When they tried pulling its limb back, they noticed that the creature attempted to strangle Ghira with its tail. It seemed that no matter what they did, they couldn't pull the parasite off without seriously harming or killing Ghira. 

As Vernal entered the greenhouse, Kali walked up to her with fire in her eyes. She shoved the security officer, causing the other settlers to stop what they were doing and turn to the two women. Immediately, a few security guards arrived and got between both Vernal and Kali.

"Why did you bring those eggs back here?!" Kali shouted, "I told you to leave them alone!" 

"It was not my idea," Vernal shouted back, "Do you really think I would risk the safety of the people living here? Get over yourself, Belladonna. I brought them back here because I was ordered to by the doctors-"

"-why the fuck did they give you that order?!"

"They said that they needed more information on the parasites! I didn't like the idea either, but if it's to save Ghira, then I think it's worth letting a few eggs into the base."

Kali fell silent at that. Although she didn't want any of the eggs near her family, if there was a chance they could save her husband, then she was willing to follow along with the Malachite twins' plan. 

"You didn't have to bring this many back with you though," Kali snapped. Vernal rolled her eyes at that.

/

/

Setting: Medlab

Time: A few minutes later... 

As the Malachite twins continued working on Ghira, Kali entered the area. She was still pissed off from earlier, but had slightly calmed down from Vernal's explanation. Still, she wanted to hear directly from the twins themselves. 

"Melanie, Miltia," Kali said, causing the twins to stop what they were doing and turn to Kali, "You ordered Vernal to bring the eggs back here?"

"Yes," Melanie said. 

"Did Vernal not tell you we wanted to examine the eggs for research purposes?" Miltia added.

"Yeah, she told me," Kali replied, "I just wanted to be sure." 

At that, the twins turned to each other with strange looks on their faces. Kali picked up on their expressions but was unsure what to think of them. Melanie then turned to Kali and slowly approached her. "Ms. Belladonna," she said, her tone serious, "Did you notice anything strange about the eggs?"

"Strange? What do you mean?"

"Did the eggs seem...fresh?" Miltia added, "Was there any residue on them? How did they feel?"

Kali wasn't sure where this was going and she didn't like it one bit. "Well...from what I saw, they looked...I don't know how to describe it. Gooey? Pasty?"

"But definitely not dry," Melanie said.

"Yes, why is that so important?"

Melanie and Miltia looked at each other, somewhat alarmed. They then turned back to Kali.

"Ms. Belladonna, although this is just a theory at this point," Melanie said, "Don't you think it's strange that these eggs were found in that state? They were, as you say, 'gooey'. Consider where we are. This entire tundra is nothing but snow and ice. So tell me...how do these eggs have liquid on them?"

Kali stepped back, not sure what the answer is. "Maybe it's a different kind of liquid? Maybe they don't freeze at this temperature?"

"Or," Miltia said, "Something that Melanie and I have been discussing. Maybe it's because they were freshly laid."

"Freshly laid...no, that's impossible. This entire tundra is dead, no living thing can survive here-"

"-and yet," Melanie said, "Something out here is laying eggs. Believe us, Ms. Belladonna, we considered our group's initial theory. That these eggs were remnants of a time before the Solitas tundra became an inhospitable winter landscape. That the eggs somehow survived by being frozen over, similar to the hibernation process."

"But that doesn't explain the liquid found on the eggs," Militia added, "I think the more probable theory is, the eggs found in the cave that you and Ghira stumbled upon...they were laid recently. There is something out there and it has the ability to survive the tundra's extreme weather."

Kali didn't like the sound of that. She didn't want to consider that there was some never-before-seen creature out here, somehow able to survive the inhospitable terrain. However, before Kali could question the Malachite twins' theory...the alarm went off. 

* * *

Setting: Medlab 

Time: Few minutes after Summer spoke with Blake...

Penny Polendina was dissecting one of the dead parasites that the group found in the Medlab, using a microscope to help her with the process. Cordovin's orders were simple; learn as much of the creature's anatomy as you can. The marines wanted information, especially since all their information on the Grimm was coming from Summer, who, at best, was an indirect source. Even Summer herself said that she didn't fully understand the creature's anatomy and how it functioned. 

For the most part, nothing seemed out of the ordinary for Penny. The creature had all the essential organs; heart, kidney, lungs, etc.. But it still fascinated her that this creature existed in the first place.

A living thing, in Remnant's most inhospitable territory. It was an ugly creature, but it was still a living thing. Well, at least this one used to be. 

As Penny continued to work, Vine Zeki joined her, pushing a dolly into the room containing all sorts of equipment that Penny needed for her research. After dropping the equipment off, Vine turned to the android and asked, "Need anything else?"

Penny didn't respond at first. She then stopped her work and turned to face Vine. Vine nearly stepped back, unnerved at Penny's blank stare.

"Hello, Penny?" Vine said, "I was asking if you needed anything else?"

"...no." Penny then turned back to the microscope and continued with the dissection. 

"That's a nice pet you got there, Penny," Vine said as he watched the android pull the dead parasite apart.

"Sensational, isn't it?" 

Vine nodded, unsure what to make of Penny's assessment of the parasite. 

* * *

Setting: Operations room, Hadley's Hope bio-dome

"Yo! Stop your grinning and drop your linen. Found them!"

Everyone present in the operations room stopped what they were doing when they heard Cardin. After spending over an hour searching for any sign of the missing settlers, he finally stumbled upon a lead. Cordovin, Qrow, Mercury, Ironwood, and Winter all joined him at the terminal, eager to see what he found. 

"They alive?" Cordovin asked. 

"Unknown...but it looks like all of them. Over at the processing station...sublevel 3...under the main cooling towers."

"Looks like a goddamn town meeting," Qrow said, noting how many people were in the same area. 

Cordovin smiled. This was what she was waiting for. "Let's saddle up, Ironwood," she said, turning to the sergeant with a big grin on her face. 

"Aye, ma'am," Ironwood said, acknowledging the order, "All right. Let's go, people. They ain't paying us by the hour. Let's go! Head 'em out! Okay, Marigold, you're driving."

* * *

Setting: The APC, on its way to the processing station 

Time: A few minutes later...

With the location of the settlers finally known, the entire crew (minus Harriet Bree and Vine Zeki, who elected to stay behind with the bullhead, and Penny Polendina, who stayed behind to continue dissecting the Grimm parasites) headed their way to the processing station. The air was tense as each person began running scenarios in their heads about the fate of the settlers. Some were hopeful, others, namely Summer Rose, was fearing the worst. 

Against Cordovin's orders, the group decided to bring Blake Belladonna along. Cordovin wanted the girl to stay with Penny but Summer insisted they bring her along with them. Although she didn't say it out loud, the reason was because she didn't trust the girl with Penny, no matter how harmless the android was claimed to be. 

For the most part, Blake was taking the trip well. She sat by herself in a corner of the APC, quietly talking to her Ilia doll. Summer assumed that was the girl's way of coping with the situation.

"It's okay," Blake whispered to her doll, "Don't worry. It'll be okay." Summer frowned. She wanted to comfort the girl, reassure her that things will be okay, but it seems that the girl made up her mind a while ago. Summer still couldn't get the girl's words out of her head. That even with a fully-armed, Atlesian marine unit, it wouldn't make a difference against the Grimm. Part of Summer wanted to believe that the marines were enough to destroy the Grimm once and for all.

However...as much as she hated to admit it, part of her agreed with what Blake had to say. 

The APC entered a tunnel that led to the processing station. Before the group got any closer, they stopped and parked the APC, choosing to go the rest of the way on foot. Since the tunnel was dark, Elm Ederne activated the floodlights on top of the APC, illuminating the path ahead. So far, no sign of the Grimm, which the marines saw as a good sign.

After making sure the coast was clear, the marines headed out of the APC. Sergeant James Ironwood led the way while Winter and Clover followed closely behind with their Giandujas. Qrow, Cardin, Marrow, Elm, Marigold, and Greenleaf stood back in order to watch the group's rear. The squad then moved forward towards the processing station, checking their corners every now and then. 

As before, Summer, Mercury, and Cordovin stayed behind in the APC, but were now accompanied by Blake. While observing the marines' movements, Cordovin said through the radio, "I want a straight 'V' deployment, second team on left flank. Advance on axial 664. Tracker on line. Set the 'V' gain to filter R.F. ambient." 

Ironwood nodded his head at the order. "Winchester, tracker on line," he told to Cardin, "Left and right, little buddy."

So far, so good. As the marines took a right turn heading into a different tunnel, they saw that nothing had changed from before. Still no activity and, more importantly, no Grimm.

"Forty meters in, bearing 221, there should be a stairwell," Cordovin said. She noticed it on a map of Hadley's Hope that the group had found while exploring the operations center. "You want sublevel 3."

"Check, got it," Ironwood responded back. The marines made their way to the stairwell and started headed downwards. As they could see from the floor designation sign in front of the stairwell, they were still on level one. They needed to go two stories down to reach the settlers. 

"Let's go, people," Ironwood said as the marines cautiously made their way down the stairs, "Winchester, you got the point. Branwen, watch our tails. Nice and easy. Check those corners. Check those corners."

"Watch your spacing," Cordovin added. 

As Summer, Mercury, and Blake (who had left her corner to join the adults out of curiosity) watched the monitors, Summer couldn't help but feel a sense of dread from this whole situation. If the Grimm was responsible for the settlers' disappearance - which they all but confirmed when they found the Grimm parasites in the Medlab - then where was it? The Atlesian marines certainly did not go the stealth route when they entered Hadley's Hope. Everyone in the area would've known they were here.

_Did the settlers kill them all? Did the Grimm just retreat? Or...are they waiting for us? But if it's waiting for us, what is it planning on doing? What's the endgame here? God, what the hell is it doing?_

Before Summer could continue that line of thought, she was interrupted by Ironwood on the radio. "All right. You heard the woman. Don't bunch up. Stay loose-"

_BZZT!_

From Qrow Branwen's screen, the camera feed flickered for a bit before returning to normal. The APC group also could've sworn they heard static coming from it. 

Summer silently cursed to herself. Just like with Clover Ebi during the drop, the camera feed was acting up again, this time with Qrow. She couldn't believe that the Atlesians were working with equipment this faulty. 

Cordovin, on the other hand, brushed off the minor hiccup. "Your transmission's showing a lot of breakup," Cordovin said to the marines.

"Probably getting some interference from the structure," Cardin added. 

"Use those lights," Ironwood responded.

 _Well...that's optimistic. Let's hope you're right, Winchester._ Summer was skeptical but she let the train of thought go, not wanting to stress herself out any more than she was already. 

The further the group got to sub-level 3, the more the structure began to...change. Summer noticed that there was something off about the hallways the closer they got to the settlers. It seemed like something was growing on the walls. Some sort of strange, organic-looking material that clashed with the metallic walls. It was black, tar-like, and it seemed to be everywhere. Even with her experience with the Grimm, Summer wasn't sure what to make of all this.

To Summer's side, Blake noticed the change in the walls as well. She grimaced but kept quiet. 

"Next one down, and proceed on a 216," Cordovin said as she kept her eyes glued to the monitors. 

"Roger, that's a 216," Ironwood replied back.

"I'm not making that out too well. What is it, Winchester?"

Cardin was heard groaning through the radio, which earned him an eye roll from Cordovin. "You tell me, man. I only work here."

This time, the marines and the APC group couldn't ignore the changes in the structure. Sub-level 3 was entirely covered in this weird material. On closer inspection, the material looked tough, like armor. However, it clearly clashed with the area, as if something aside from the settlers was responsible for these changes. 

Summer held her breath as a theory popped in her head. _Is_ _the Grimm...changing the environment to make it more hospitable for itself?_

Cordovin turned to Summer, clearly confused by what she was seeing. "What is that?" she asked. 

All Summer could do was shrug. "I don't know." It wasn't a lie, Summer didn't know what to make of all of this. 

Cordovin bit her lip, not happy with that answer. But, unable to actually do anything about it, she said to the marines, "Proceed inside." Only way to get some answers was to move forward. 

The marines moved forward, but were growing increasingly more disturbed the further they went. All of sub-level 3 had been transformed into this hideous maze of strange, dark, organic material that covered the entire hallway. They felt like they were in a horror movie with how nightmarish their surroundings were. 

Wanting to keep the troop morale up, Ironwood said, "Watch your fire and check your targets. Remember...we're looking for civvies in here. Easy."

"Tighten it up, Marigold, we're getting a little thin." Branwen said. Marigold silently nodded and fixed her spacing with the rest of the group.

"Nice and easy."

Out of curiosity, Joanna Greenleaf turned to the walls, reached over, and ripped a piece out. Analyzing the piece she just grabbed, Greenleaf turned to the rest of the group and said, "It looks like some sort of secreted resin."

"Yeah, but secreted from what?" Qrow Branwen asked. Greenleaf shrugged and threw the piece of the wall away. 

Summer, having heard what the two, thought back to her initial theory. That the Grimm was changing the environment to make it hospitable for itself. Although she couldn't say for sure, the idea that the Grimm was secreting resin to change the structure certainly strengthened her little Grimm theory. 

Ironwood groaned at the two marines, especially towards Joanna for just grabbing the strange material before checking to see if it was safe to touch. "Nobody touch nothing," he growled. Greenleaf acknowledged his order with a nod. 

From behind Summer, Mercury couldn't help but be impressed with how successful the Grimm was at changing the environment. To him, it was a tad bit ironic considering that Hadley's Hope was set up to change the environment in the unexplored north by making the terrain more hospitable for human/faunus use. "Busy little creatures." he muttered to himself, in awe of the Grimm's capabilities. Summer heard him but chose to ignore what he had to say. 

Back with the marines, the further they got to the settlers' signal, the more they started to notice the change in temperature. May Marigold wiped some sweat away, then said, "Hot as hell in here." 

"Yeah, man, but it's a dry heat," Cardin snarked, a bit too loudly for the group's comfort. 

"Knock it off, Winchester," Ironwood said. 

In the APC, Summer couldn't help but hone in on what Marigold said. _Hmm...that's weird. The Grimm can't change the temperature, right? That's not something it did with my crew. There has to be a different explanation-_

Summer trailed off when she looked at the map of the area. Right where the settlers' signals were being traced, she saw that the settlement's primary heat exchangers were in the vicinity. Although that was normal since the group was in the processing station, with the possibility of a Grimm threat in the area, Summer realized that there was a danger of accidentally destroying those machines, causing a chain reaction that would destroy the entire settlement. And knowing that the marines were packing an impressive amount of firepower...

"Lieutenant, what do those pulse rifles fire?" Summer asked Cordovin.

Confused, Cordovin turned to Summer. "Um...ten millimeter explosive-tip caseless. Standard light armor-piercing round. Why?"

"Well...look where your team is. They're right under the primary heat exchangers."

"So?"

"So...if they fire their weapons in there, won't they rupture the cooling system?"

At that, Mercury leaned in. He looked horrified as he realized what Summer was getting at. "Oh, ho, ho, ho. Yeah. She's absolutely right," Mercury said, causing Cordovin to look at him, even more confused than before.

"So? So what?"

"Look. This whole station is basically a big fusion reactor. Right? So you're talking about a thermonuclear explosion, and...adios, muchachos."

Cordovin, finally realizing what the threat was, groaned and sat back in her seat. She didn't say it but Summer could tell that the lieutenant wasn't expecting this operation to have a massive hiccup like this. Still, Summer was glad that she mentioned the potential danger now, rather than later. 

"Great," Cordovin muttered to herself in anger, "Wonderful...shit! Okay...look...Ironwood. Look. We can't have any firing in there. I want you to collect magazines from everybody."

This did not sit well with the marines. Instantly, all the troops (minus Ironwood) started groaning, completely thrown off by Cordovin's sudden request.

Cardin was taking it the worst. "Is she fucking crazy?!" he shouted. 

"What the hell are we supposed to use, man, harsh language?" Marigold added, agreeing with Cardin. 

Winter Schnee didn't say anything but the look on her face indicated that she was pissed beyond belief. 

"Flame units only," Cordovin continued, "I want rifles slung."

Ironwood, for the first time since the operation started, found himself doubting the lieutenant. "Ma'am, I-"

"Just do it, sergeant. And no grenades."

Despite not agreeing with the orders, Ironwood had no choice but to comply. After all, he was out-ranked. "All right, sweethearts," he said to the rest of the marines, causing them to groan even more, "You heard the woman. Pull 'em out. Come on. Let's have 'em. Come on, Schnee. Clear and lock."

"Damn it!" Cardin shouted as he prepared to unload his weapon. 

One by one, the marines reluctantly unloaded their rifles and handed the magazines to Ironwood, who was collecting them in a bag. Winter snarled as she gave her magazine to Ironwood, which he chose to ignore. 

"You too. Give it up, Ederne. Come on. Let's go. Amin, I want it now. Give it up. Let's go, marine. Give it up."

Unbeknownst to Ironwood and the rest of the group, Winter reached into her belt and pulled out a spare magazine for herself and Clover. Clover smirked as Winter gave him the mag, which he proceeded to load into his Gianduja. 

"Right on, Schnee," he said. The two marines shared a look as Ironwood finished collecting all of the unit's magazines. 

With all the magazines collected, Ironwood handed the bag to May Marigold. "Marigold, you got the duty." She groaned in response but took the bag anyways. "Thanks a lot...sarge," Marigold sarcastically said to Ironwood. Just like with Winter, Ironwood chose to ignore the remark. 

Looking forward to the rest of the tunnel, Ironwood ordered the squad to keep moving. "Branwen, cover our ass. Head 'em out, people."

As the troops continued moving, Marigold noticed Qrow reach for his back. He then pulled out a shotgun, which Ironwood conveniently missed. "I like to keep this handy." Qrow said as he pumped the shotgun, "For close encounters."

Marigold nodded. "I heard that."

* * *

Setting: Main processing station, sub-level 3 

The marines, after crossing through the tunnel, managed to make their way to the main station. Despite being in the area where the settlers were, the marines still saw no trace of the civilians. 

"Any movement?" Cordovin asked. 

"Nothing," Cardin replied as he kept his eyes on his motion tracking device, "Zip-"

He immediately trailed off when he looked up...and saw it. All the marines had to stop what they were doing when they saw what caught Cardin's eyes.

Suspended a few feet in the air was one of the settlers. They were covered in the strange resin that stained the walls. The settler was dead, their face stuck in a permanent state of horror. Judging from how tough the resin was, the rigor mortis that had settled in, and the state of the settler's skin, it seemed like they had been hanging there for some time now. Ironwood, Cardin, and the rest of the marines could only stare at the sight in shock. 

May Marigold summarized what all the marines were thinking at that moment. "Holy shit."

The horror wasn't lost on the APC group. Summer cringed, not wanting to think how awful that death must have been. Suddenly realizing that there was a child present, Summer turned to Blake and said, "Shadow, go sit up front. Go on. Now." Blake didn't think twice and ran from the monitors to the front of the APC. She sat in the driver's seat and looked out the window. 

The further the marines went into the processing station, the worse the scene got. More and more settlers were found, permanently glued to the walls due to the black, tar-like resin. On the ground, the marines also started finding strange, egg-like objects. The objects had been opened, like the petals on a flower. The marines all recognized what these were based on Summer's LV-426 report and the reports found in the Medlab. 

Grimm eggs. Based on how they looked, the marines assumed all the eggs had been hatched. 

Qrow, using the tip of his shotgun to avoid having to touch the thing with his hands, lifted what appeared to be a Grimm parasite. Unlike the ones found in the Medlab, this one was brittle and shriveled up. Qrow assumed that due to the Medlab parasites being incased in water/solution, they were able to be preserved. However, without water/solution, the ones in the processing station eventually "dried up". Qrow dropped the parasite, cringing at the sight of it. He didn't want to think about one of these creatures grabbing a hold of his face and "impregnating" him, based on the reports he read. 

Ironwood, although disturbed by the situation as well, urged the team to move forward. "Steady, people," he said through the comms, "Let's finish our sweep. We're still marines, and we got a job to do. Keep it moving. Easy."

And so, the marines kept moving forward, with the APC group vigilantly watching their progress. So far, it was the same story the further they went into the station. More dead settlers, more opened up eggs, and more shriveled up, dead parasites. To the group, it was a horrifying sight. To Summer...that feeling of dread in her stomach came back with a vengeance.

_Hang on...if all these settlers had been impregnated by those parasites...and there were over 100 settlers living in Hadley's Hope...oh my god...no...there's more than one of them..._

Before Summer could say anything about her fears, Joanna Greenleaf approached one of the dead settlers trapped in the walls. She noticed that the resin for this particular settler was still wet. Thinking that this settler had just been recently glued to the wall, she reached over and gently lifted the settler's head.

What Greenleaf wasn't expecting was for the settler to open her eyes. 

"Help!" Greenleaf shouted, realizing this settler was still breathing.

"What?!" Ironwood shouted, running back to the marine. The rest of the squad followed suit. 

"Top, get over here! We got a live one!"

Turning back to the surviving settler, Greenleaf tried to calm her down. The settler just stared at her, a look of dread and horror on her face. "You're gonna be all right," Greenleaf said, trying to reassure the civilian.

The settler moaned, obviously in pain. "Please...k-k-k-kill me," she muttered weakly. 

"Just stay calm! We're gonna get you outta here! It's gonna be all right. Will somebody give me a hand over here! We gotta get her outta here-"

Suddenly, the settler screamed in pain. Summer, who had been watching Greenleaf's monitor, knew all too well what this was. She clung to her chest, as if she could feel the settler's pain. 

_Oh my god...it's Taiyang all over again._

"What is it, Greenleaf?!" Ironwood shouted as he stared at the settler writhing in agony, "What's going on?"

"Convulsion-"

_CRACK!_

The marines stepped back in surprise as the settler's chest burst open, blood pouring out as it did. Summer held in her breath, the memories coming back to her as she watched the marines stand around, confused and unable to help the poor settler. 

As the settler died, something emerged from her chest. It was small, with a dark, tar-like exterior, while its head was white, as if its skull was not covered by the tar. Since it just emerged from the settler, it was covered in blood. The creature roared at the marines, scaring all of them, as well as the APC group. 

Summer could only stare at the screens. The Grimm...finally showed its face. 

"Greenleaf, get back," Ironwood ordered, "Get back. Marigold, flamethrower-"

"-Kill it!" Cardin shouted as he backed away from the Grimm. 

"Get back everyone! Flamethrower! Move it, now!" 

Moving quickly, Marigold handed her flamethrower unit to Ironwood. With a few quick bursts, Ironwood fired at the Grimm, killing it instantly. The creature shrieked a few times in pain as it died. 

_Hiiiiiiiiiisssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss_

The marines perked up when they heard noises coming from somewhere in the area. They couldn't pin it down but something else was in the room with them. 

Unbeknownst to them...the Grimm had been carefully watching the marines ever since they entered the main tunnels. Now that they killed one of the newborn Grimm, they began slithering their way around the station, preparing to make their move. 

The Grimm were able to hide their positions from the marines. Even as the marines noticed that there was movement within the station due to their motion tracking devices going off, they couldn't pinpoint where the movement was coming from. 

"Movement!" Cardin shouted as he stared at his device. 

"What's the position?" Ironwood shouted, scanning the room for the Grimm.

"I can't lock in!" 

"Talk to me, Winchester!"

"Uh...multiple signals. They're closing!"

Cardin's stomach dropped when he saw just how many unidentified pings that were being picked up by his tracker. They seemed to be everywhere, despite not being visible to any of the marines, and they were closing in on the marines' location, fast. 

Ironwood and the rest of the marines went into battle mode. "Go to infrared, people," Ironwood ordered, "Look sharp!"

Back in the APC, Cordovin grunted in frustration, unable to figure out what was happening from the monitors. From where she was, all she was getting was a blur of smoke coming from the Grimm that had been burned and the marines quickly moving around, trying to find the Grimm. "What's happening, Ironwood!?" Cordovin shouted through the comms, "Can't see anything in here."

Summer Rose, however, instantly knew where this situation was headed. The Grimm had the home field advantage, they were everywhere, and the marines were ammo-less and confused by the entire situation. Blake's words came back to haunt her when she realized that even with all their strengths, the marines were the prey in this situation. "Pull your team out, Cordovin," Summer pleaded as she watched the screens.

At that, Cordovin brushed her off.

Back with the marines, the troops kept moving around, frightened and unsure where to even look. Cardin, still looking at his tracker, couldn't believe what he was seeing. "I got signals! I got readings in front and behind!"

"Where, man?" Marigold shouted back at him, "I don't see shit!"

"She's right," Qrow snapped, "There's nothing back here."

Cardin turned to both Qrow and Marigold, a look of sheer horror on his face. "Look, I'm telling you," he yelled at the two of them, "There's something moving, and it ain't us-"

_THWAP!_

May Marigold nearly screamed when she felt something touch her back. She instantly calmed down when she saw that it was Elm Ederne tapping her back, just trying to move past her.

"Shit!" Marigold shouted.

"That's my bad," Ederne sheepishly said as she walked away, keeping her eyes on the walls. 

As Ederne walked off, the group continued to listen to Cardin rant on about what he was seeing in his tracker. "Tracker's off scale, man. They're all around us, man! Brothers..."

"Maybe they don't show up on infrared at all," Greenleaf muttered as she turned her back to the wall. Keeping her finger on her flamethrower, she was itching to fire at these Grimm creatures, wanting to put an end to this nightmare once and for all.

If only she had turned around, she would've had her chance.

The Grimm had been hiding in plain sight by blending in with the rest of the wall. Just like the resin, it was made up of a black, tarry substance, which was how it confused Joanna Greenleaf. Without warning, it moved and grabbed the Atlesian marine. It then started lifting her away, managing to hold strong against Greenleaf's attempts to resist capture.

"GRAHHHHHH!" Greenleaf screamed as she was taken away. Since her finger was right over the trigger on the flamethrower, she shot out a stream of fire, igniting everything in front of her. Unfortunately, Private May Marigold was in the area at the time. Marigold screamed as the flames reached her, covering her entire body. 

In an attempt to put the flames out, she accidentally tripped over the guard railings and descended all the way down to sub-level 6. However, she died from the flames before she hit the ground. 

"MARIGOLD!" Qrow shouted as he, Elm Ederne, and Marrow Amin ran towards the scene. By this point, the Grimm that had taken Joanna Greenleaf was long gone. Qrow, Elm, and Marrow could only watch as Marigold's corpse burned away at the bottom floor. 

Just then, a thought occurred to Qrow. Marigold was the one holding the squad's ammunition...and she was set on fire by Greenleaf. Qrow turned to his right and saw that Marigold had dropped the ammo bag before she fell. Now, all the ammunition that Ironwood had collected was burning right before his eyes.

"Come on!" Qrow shouted, recognizing the threat. He tried pulling Elm Ederne and Marrow Amin away from the scene when all of a sudden-

_BOOOOOOM!_

Qrow, Elm, and Marrow were thrown back as the ammo bag exploded. 

Back in the APC, the monitors for Marigold and Amin went out. Their heart rate flatlined, causing alarm for Cordovin, Summer, and Mercury. 

"Oh Brothers, Ironwood, what the fuck is going on?!" Cordovin shouted. 

"Ederne and Amin are down!" Qrow shouted as he regained his senses. 

The rest of the marines began moving in to where Qrow was, unsure what was going on. The Grimm had attacked but no one else saw it. Ironwood, hearing his squad quickly descend into chaos, tried to get things under control. "Greenleaf, Amin. Sound off! Marigold!"

"Greenleaf, Marigold, off the board!" Branwen shouted. 

"Damn it...Marigold!? Talk to me!"

As Ironwood and Branwen continued shouting, Summer could only watch as Amin's vitals flatlined. This was what she was fearing and it was happening right before her eyes. _Damn it Cordovin, order a retreat already! Can't you see that they can't win this fight?!_

Qrow, after recovering from the explosion, turned to Marrow. When he flipped the man over, he saw that the marine was long gone, having been killed by the ammunition explosion. He cursed silently to himself, thinking that if he had pulled Marrow away sooner, this wouldn't have happened.

Before he had time to grieve, he suddenly heard Elm Ederne's screaming over the radio. For a second, he forgot that she was with him at the time of the explosion. 

"EDERNE?!" he shouted, trying to get a hold of her, "EDERNE?!"

It was too late. Elm Ederne's screaming soon came to a sudden halt. For the APC group, they knew she was gone as soon as her camera feed cut off and her heartrate flatlining shortly afterwards. 

Winter Schnee cursed out loud, having had enough of the Grimm's bullshit. "Let's rock!" she shouted as she began blindly firing her Gianduja at the walls. 

"Yeah!" Clover shouted with her as he joined in the gunfire. 

Back in the APC group, Cordovin's eyes widened when she heard the gunfire. That wasn't supposed to happen, Ironwood had collected all the magazines. Through the comm, Cordovin shouted, "Who's firing? Goddamn it! Answer me! I ordered to hold fire!"

No response. At this point, Summer knew it was too late for calm answers, the marines were panicking too much for that.

"They're coming out of the walls! They're coming out of the goddamned walls! Let's book!" Cardin's words haunted the surviving Atlesian marines as they continued opening fire all around them. They couldn't tell where the Grimm were but it was either let them kill them or fight back. 

"On your right, man!" Winter shouted as she shot towards one of the Grimm. The Grimm fell hard to the ground, its acidic blood tearing right through the metal sheets below it. 

In the APC, Cordovin was barely holding it together as she turned to her comms. Summer knew the lieutenant was losing it but continued to refrain from intervening. She only hoped that the lieutenant could get it together long enough to order her troops to retreat. "Ironwood," Cordovin started, calmly, "I want you to lay down a suppressing fire with the incinerators-"

"Schnee, Ebi, hold your fire, goddamn it!" Ironwood shouted. Cordovin groaned, realizing that Ironwood didn't hear a single word she said. 

"Ironwood, are you copying me? I want you to lay down suppressing fire with the incinerators and fall back by squads to the A.P.C. Over."

"Say again...all after 'incinerator'."

Summer fought back the urge to facepalm. _This is NOT the time to have a malfunction!_

Cordovin sighed, regaining her composure as she repeated her orders once again. "I said I want you to lay down a suppressing fire with the incinerators and fall back by squads to the A.P.C. Over-"

"-GRAHHHHHHHH!"

Summer, Mercury, and Cordovin all watched in horror as James Ironwood's camera feed went out. Although it was brief, Summer saw what just happened; as he was listening to Cordovin's orders, a Grimm snuck up from above and captured him. He didn't even have time to react, that was how quick the Grimm swooped in on him. Ironwood's vitals were still normal but aside from that, he was long gone. At this point, only the Brothers knew where the Grimm was taking him.

"Sarge! Sarge! Oh shit, he's gone!" Cardin's voice came through, completely panicking over how FUBAR the operation has become.

Cordovin, having lost her lead field soldier, now no longer knew what to do. Summer watched in anger as Cordovin grew silent, unable to deal with the situation. All Summer wanted was for Cordovin to order a retreat and yet there she was, near catatonic, completely useless, letting her squad be torn apart.

"Ironwood...talk to me."

None of the marines heard what Cordovin said. Qrow and Cardin were too busy screaming at each other, both confused as to what to do now. Meanwhile, Clover and Winter continued opening fire but from what Summer and Mercury could pick up on, they too were losing control of the situation. 

"Ironwood? Talk to me, Ironwood-"

"-HE'S GONE!" Summer shouted at Cordovin, having had enough, "Get them out of there! Do it now!"

"Shut up!" Cordovin shouted back at Summer. 

_No, fuck you, you don't get to tell me to shut up when you've lost the plot!_ Grabbing a headset, Summer shouted into the mic, "Branwen, whoever's left, get-"

"-Rose, just shut up-"

"- Goddamn it, Cordovin, they're fucking dying in there!"

Suddenly, Summer and Cordovin's attention was turned to Qrow and Cardin's cams. Both of them were completely scared, Cardin having lost his composure completely. 

"THEY'RE COMING OUT OF THE GODDAMNED WALLS!" Cardin shouted at Qrow. 

"WHERE'S IRONWOOD?!" Qrow shouted back, "WHERE'S IRONWOOD?!"

"THE SARGE IS GONE! LET'S GET THE FUCK OUT OF HERE!"

"LET'S MOVE IT THEN. LET'S GO, MARINES!"

Cordovin went back into her near-catatonic state as she watched her unit devolve. Leaderless, defenseless, overwhelmed, and outnumbered, the survivors just fired randomly, hoping to hit the Grimm. At this point, the Grimm was just taunting them. 

"Winchester?" Cordovin muttered, scared of just how far gone this whole thing was, "Schnee?"

No response from the marines. Instead, Cordovin watched as Qrow fired his shotgun at a Grimm that had nearly attacked Cardin from behind. 

"Branwen...please, talk to me."

No response again from the marines. Cordovin could only watch as Winter and Clover fired all around them, hitting almost nothing. Once in a while, they would make contact with a Grimm creature but for the most part, they were firing at nothing. 

"Fall back...I told them to fall back...I told them to fall back-"

"-THEY'RE CUT OFF!" Summer shouted as she grabbed Cordovin by the neck, stopping the lieutenant in her tracks, "DO SOMETHING!" When Cordovin didn't respond to Summer, Summer let her go and ran to the front of the APC. "FUCK!" 

Summer was not going to sit around and do nothing after witnessing all the chaos that unfolded in the processing station. She gestured for Blake to step away from the driver's seat, then strapped her in to a nearby chair. This was going to be one hell of a trip. 

"Hold on, Shadow," Summer said. She then ran to the driver's seat and activated the APC. She drove forward, right towards the Grimm's nest. 

Cordovin was forced out of her near-catatonic state when she felt the APC moving. Instantly, she felt rage at the civilian trying to assume command of the mission, "Rose, what the HELL are you doing?! Turn around!" 

Summer grunted as Cordovin rushed over to her side and tried pulling her hands off of the APC controls. From the brief loss of control of the APC, Summer accidentally crashed into the wall. However, she regained control and kept driving forward, despite Cordovin trying to stop her. 

"That's an order!" Cordovin shouted, her tone heated, exasperated. When Cordovin tried pulling her hands again, Summer accidentally ran into a pillar, causing sparks to shoot out all over the APC. 

"Get off me, damn it!" Summer shouted as she shoved the inept lieutenant away from her. Fearing for her life, Blake lifted the restraints from her seat and hid in a corner of the APC. If the Grimm didn't get her, then she was worried she would die in a car accident. 

"Goddamn it, that's an order-"

Surprising Summer, Mercury Black showed up and shoved Cordovin aside. "You had your chance, Cordovin," he shouted at the officer. This time, Cordovin stayed back, giving up on the mission. 

Now with Cordovin away, Summer focused on driving to the nest. It took a little over a minute but she was able to navigate her way down to sub-level 3. She could tell she was close due to the change in scenery. 

As she approached the nest, she gasped when she saw that the way had been blocked by a wall of hardened Grimm tar. _Well...here goes nothing. Hope this military vehicle has good ramming strength!_ Summer closed her eyes as she drove full-speed into the wall. 

_CRASH!_

The wall of Grimm resin exploded as the APC drove through it. Everyone inside the APC was rattled but for the most part, the APC survived the impact. Summer then parked the vehicle and awaited for the surviving marines to exit the nest.

Much to Summer's dismay, she saw that the only ones left were Qrow, Cardin, Winter, and Clover. Still, it was better than no survivors. 

Outside, the surviving marines made their way to the APC. Seeing the Grimm wall covering their path, Cardin said, "It's blocked, man. We gotta go around." Immediately, Qrow and Cardin made their way around to the second set of doors into the APC. 

"Open the door!" Summer shouted to Mercury. Mercury immediately went into action and headed to the door to let the marines in. Then, with a pair of headsets connected to the marines' comms, Summer shouted, "Branwen, get your team out of there! Now!"

"MARINES, WE ARE LEAVING!" Qrow shouted, hearing Summer clear as day. Cardin was already at the APC entrance while Winter and Clover continued firing. They were doing fine when, all of a sudden...

_CLICK, CLICK, CLICK_

"Shit!" Clover shouted. He had run out of ammo for his Gianduja. Panicking, he dropped the weapon, then switched to his flamethrower. 

Mercury opened the doors, letting Qrow and Cardin in. Winter was close behind. However, Clover was still outside, desperately shooting his flamethrower at the incoming Grimm. Winter, seeing that the man was too far from the APC, began shouting at him to pick up the pace.

"EBI, COME ON, WE NEED TO GO!" Winter shouted.

Just as she uttered those words...a Grimm revealed itself. It was hiding against the wall right next to Clover. Thinking fast, Winter opened fire at the Grimm, killing it instantly. Unfortunately, the Grimm's tarry, black blood hit Clover. He started screaming in agony as the acid tore away at his face. 

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO-"

It was too late. Clover fired his last stream from the flamethrower, which engulfed the area all around him...including himself. Some of the fire even hit the APC, forcing Mercury to act fast by grabbing a nearby fire extinguisher.

"Fire in the hole!" Cardin shouted as Mercury did his best to kill the flames, "Put it out. Put it out. Go, go!"

As Mercury and Cardin dealt with the flames inside the APC, Winter tried to rush out of the vehicle in order to help Clover, even after seeing him engulfed in flames. She was only held back by Qrow, who pushed her firmly against the APC's walls to prevent her from running out.

"He's gone," Qrow shouted at Winter. Winter tried to push him back, but to no avail.

"Ebi's coming, man," Winter shouted back, the tears starting to form in her eyes as she watched Clover's body burn away. "Ebi!"

"He's gone!"

"No, he's not!"

"Goddamit Schnee, forget him! He's gone!"

After a while, Winter realized that Qrow was right and, knowing that there were other people in danger, gave up. Qrow then nudged her into the APC, then attempted to shut the doors. 

_SHWICK!_

Qrow nearly screamed in terror when a pair of Grimm claws appeared out of nowhere, keeping the doors open. They were inches away from his face, to the point that he could almost feel the Grimm touching his skin. "They're in the goddamned door," Qrow shouted, causing Cardin and Winter to rush back to help. Still, despite three marines trying to close the doors, the Grimm was able to withstand their efforts on its own. 

Thinking fast, Qrow briefly let go of the door and grabbed his shotgun. He then stuck it right into the Grimm's mouth and shouted "Eat this!" before splattering the Grimm's brains out all over the floor. Cardin screamed as some of the black tar hit his arm, quickly eating away at his skin. 

Cardin fell back while Qrow and Winter closed the doors. "ROSE, DRIVE!" Qrow shouted, "GO, GO, GO!" That was enough for Summer as she started backing up away from the Grimm nest. 

Summer didn't have time to drive steady. With full speed, she booked it down the tunnel, causing everyone inside to topple over. Not that anyone cared at the moment, they were just happy to be away from the nest. 

However, at least one person hated the way Summer was driving. Caroline Cordovin, before she could tell Summer to slow down, was knocked unconscious when a tool box fell off from a shelf and hit her head. 

_Just keep driving, just keep driving, just keep driving, just keep driving, just keep driving-_

Summer's thoughts were interrupted when she heard something hit the top of the APC. When she looked up, she saw that she was face-to-face with another Grimm. She nearly screamed when the Grimm broke through the APC sunroof and attempted to grab her with its hideous claws.

Immediately, Summer hit the brakes on the APC. The sudden stop forced the Grimm off the roof, causing it to land in front of the vehicle. _Payback time, you evil motherfucker._ Summer drove forward and squished the monster underneath her wheels. The creature screamed as it was crushed to death. 

With that last obstacle out of the way, Summer drove forward. Seeing the entrance to the tunnel which led back into the main settlement area, Summer ran through the tunnel doors at full-speed. Just like with the Grimm wall, the APC rammed through the tunnel doors with ease.

For once, Summer was glad to see the snow and ice of the Solitas tundra. Anything was better than seeing the Grimm nest again. 

As Summer drove through the snow, Qrow Branwen joined her side and gently placed his hand over hers. He was trying to get her to stop. "It's all right," he said, "We're clear. Rose, you've blown the transaxle. You're just grinding metal. Come on, ease down. Ease down...ease down...ease down...ease down."

Summer wasn't sure how he managed to do it but Qrow was able to get her to calm down. She slowed the vehicle down and, eventually, came to a halt. The nightmare was over...for now. With the APC stopped, Qrow left her side to tend to the wounded. Summer then stood up from her seat to do the same. The first person she went to was Blake, who she almost forgot was in the APC during the rescue mission into the Grimm nest.

"You okay?" Summer asked Blake. Blake, despite looking tired and stressed from the ordeal, raised a thumbs up. Summer smiled at that. 

The next person Summer wanted to check was Cardin, remembering that he was hit in the arm with Grimm acid. However, she immediately backed off when she saw his reaction to Mercury. 

All Mercury did was ask if he was okay. Cardin, in response, shoved the silver-haired man out of the way, then shouted, "Get away from me, man!" It was clear he was still in shock over what just happened. 

As Cardin sulked to himself, Summer noticed that Cordovin was knocked out, her head bleeding from where the toolbox hit her. Qrow was tending to the lieutenant's wounds. She was still alive but Summer feared the worst.

"What happened to Cordovin," Summer asked as she crouched down to examine the lieutenant's head wound.

"I don't know," Qrow said, "Maybe a concussion. But she's alive-"

"-she's about to be dead," Winter growled as she stormed her way to Qrow and Summer. She then grabbed Cordovin by the neck, prepared to strangle the woman, "Wake up, asshole, and then I'm gonna kill you-"

"-Back off. Right now." Qrow's warning was blunt and cold. To prevent Winter from going any further, he held his arm up to her, promising that he will stop her by force if he had to. Since her beef wasn't with Qrow, she let Cordovin go and walked away, still angry about everything that happened. 

As the group continued to tend to Cordovin's wounds, Cardin stood up when he noticed something strange about the monitors. "Hey," he said, getting the group's attention, "Hey, look. Sergeant Ironwood and Greenleaf aren't dead, man. Their signs are real low, but they ain't dead."

"Then we go back in there and get them," Winter said, already reaching for a spare pulse rifle.

"Fuck that-"

"-we don't leave our people behind-"

"-I ain't going back in there-"

"-YOU CAN'T HELP THEM," Summer shouted over both Cardin and Winter, getting the two to stop. This time, everyone in the APC was staring at Summer, wondering what she meant by that. Thinking back to what happened to the settlers of Hadley's Hope - and Taiyang Xiao Long - Summer already knew what was going to happen to Ironwood and Greenleaf. She didn't like it...but it was the truth. 

"You can't. Right now they're being cocooned just like the others."

The sickening realization of the fates of their fellow marines made everyone sick to their stomachs. Qrow closed his eyes, completely disturbed. Winter punched a wall, angry that she was unable to help. Then there was Cardin. The once overly confident, loud-mouthed jackass of the group. For the first time since the operation started, Summer saw that he was completely terrified. As if someone had drained all the confidence he had out of him. 

"Oh, dear Lord, oh Brothers," Cardin muttered, sounding completely broken, "This ain't happening, man. This can't be happening, man. This isn't happening."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Based on: Aliens (1986)
> 
> Just a reminder, if you haven't done so already, go over to the "POLL 1" chapter and vote for your favorite of the movie selections! Whichever gets the most votes will be the next full-length, movie-to-RWBY adaptation, right after I finish work on "Grimms".
> 
> AN: I'm going to take a brief pause on this movie. Why? Because it's Christmas! I got a nondescript-holiday special coming up, it's going to be great. After the special, I'll come back to "Grimms".


	24. Grimms (BONUS CHAPTER)

Okay, here's the story behind this. Out of curiosity, I wanted to see if I could commission some fanart for this fanfic. I figured that since this fanfic is all about adapting movies and TV shows to the RWBY universe, I thought it'd be fun to include some fake movie posters. I love it when actual studios do this; for example, when "Tropic Thunder" made all those fake trailers at the start of the movie in order to introduce the main characters. 

Anyways, I looked around and I stumbled across this site called Fiverr. From there, I was able to commission some artwork and...wow...here are the results: 

Like...wow. Words can't describe how blown away I felt when I saw the finished product. It was absolutely worth spending money for this gorgeous art.

Anyways, show some love to the artist. Their username is "Ivanwind Studios" and they were a blast to work with. I was actually really nervous going into this project since I've never commissioned art before, but they really did a fantastic job in making the process simple and efficient. 10/10, would work with this artist again. 

Here's a link to their page, all credit for this art goes to them: [ivanwind | Illustration, Cartoons & Comics | Fiverr](https://www.fiverr.com/ivanwind)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Based on: Aliens (1986)
> 
> Just a reminder, if you haven't done so already, go over to the "POLL 1" chapter and vote for your favorite of the movie selections! Whichever gets the most votes will be the next full-length, movie-to-RWBY adaptation, right after I finish work on "Grimms".


	25. Grimms (Part 5)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In the aftermath of the disastrous ambush inside the Grimm nest, the survivors recover and attempt to reassess their situation. In the meantime, Penny discovers something about Hadley's Hope that could make their situation even more dire than it is...

Setting: Inside the APC, in the center of the Hadley's Hope settlement 

Time: A few minutes after the ambush inside the Grimm nest...

Despite the group taking a breather, tensions were still high among everyone. Everyone was still dealing with what just occurred inside the main processing station. The marines had come into this mission thinking it would be a walk in the park and now, here they were, completely demoralized and with nearly half the entire unit wiped out. Summer Rose was reminded of that fact when she took a quick glance at the computer monitors that displayed the stats and camera feed of each marine. She grimaced when she saw the flatlined vitals for Marrow Amin, Elm Ederne, May Marigold, and Clover Ebi, as well as the low vital signs for James Ironwood and Joanna Greenleaf. 

_Well...low for now,_ Summer thought. She knew that in a couple of hours, they'd be dead as well due to the Grimm "impregnating" them with the Grimm parasites. Disturbed at that thought, Summer reached into her jacket and pulled out a cigarette. She lit it up and started smoking. It didn't calm her down completely but it helped.

As she smoked, the surviving marines, Winter Schnee, Qrow Branwen, and Cardin Winchester, began gathering around to discuss their next steps. Qrow was finishing up applying the field dressing to the spot on Cardin's arm where he was hit by the Grimm's acidic blood. As he did, Blake Belladonna watched, just curious about what they were talking about. Summer briefly thought of pulling the girl away but since there was nowhere in the APC for her to go, she decided to let Blake listen in on the marines. 

"All right," Winter said with a determined look on her face, "We got seven canisters of CN-20. I say we roll them in there and nerve gas the whole fucking nest."

Qrow nodded his head at that. "That's worth a try, but we don't even know if it's gonna affect them," he said with a frown. 

"Look, let's just bug out and call it even, okay?" Cardin interrupted. Qrow and Winter looked back at him, somewhat disgusted by his cowardly words. "What are we talking about this for?!" 

Even though the others couldn't blame Cardin for being terrified, it still didn't sit right with the group to just abandon the fight. They had lost six people inside that nest. Blake lost everyone in the settlement. And then there was Summer, who was the first person to lose people to the Grimm. Although she wasn't blaming Cardin for wanting to leave, she found herself agreeing with Winter's call to action. All she wanted was to go back into that nest and destroy every last one of them. If she drove them to extinction, so be it. 

_But if it's not enough to just pump the nest full of nerve gas,_ Summer thought, _then we need to think bigger. We need to use a "Scorched Remnant" policy to end them once and for all. Wipe this place out from existence-_

"I say we go with Cardin's plan and take off back to the airship," Summer said out loud, catching everyone's attention, "Then, once we're far enough...nuke the entire settlement. It's the only way to be sure."

When Summer looked to the marines, she saw that Winter was nodding her head, agreeing with her plan. Qrow was just staring at her. He looked somewhat surprised at her call to nuke the site. That said, Summer could tell he was considering the plan as well. Something about his gaze was telling her that Qrow was on her side. 

Cardin, unsurprisingly, supported the plan. In full seriousness, he turned to Summer and said, "Hell yeah, fucking A."

Summer smiled. He was still being crude but it was nice to have all three marines on her side. She also swore that she saw Blake nod her head. It saddened Summer that Blake didn't mind the settlement, her home, being blown to smithereens. But considering how deep the Grimm infestation was, the settlement could not be salvaged. It was better off being nuked. 

Before Summer could ask if the group was willing to move forward with nuking Hadley's Hope, Mercury Black stepped in, completely upset judging from how he was looking at the group. "Ho-ho-ho-hold on," he said, catching the group's attention, "Hold on one second. This installation has a substantial dollar value attached to it."

 _Not the TIME Mercury! Did you forget what just happened a few minutes ago?!_ "They can bill me!" Summer sarcastically shouted at the Ozpin-Salem businessman. The marines and Blake were also disappointed in Mercury's concern for money, which was the least of their concerns at the moment. 

Mercury sighed, sensing that everyone in the room were all against him at the moment. "Okay, look," he said, trying to salvage the conversation, "This is an emotional moment for all of us, okay? I know that. But let's not make snap judgements, please. This is clearly...clearly an important species we're dealing with and I don't think that you or I or anybody has the right to arbitrarily exterminate them."

At that, Summer didn't even bother trying to hide her frown. Winter as well, who began sneaking up behind Mercury during his plea to spare the settlement from destruction. It was to the point where Mercury kept looking behind him, wondering if the white-haired marine was going to snap his neck out of anger. 

Summer shook her head, still not caring if she had driven the Grimm into extinction with her actions. "Wrong," Summer scoffed, "Important species or not, we're still going to wipe them the fuck out."

"Yeah, watch us," Winter added, folding her arms as she stared down Mercury with hate in her eyes. 

Cardin, who had been acting terrified ever since he had escaped the Grimm nest, suddenly became angry after hearing Mercury speak. "Maybe you haven't been keeping up on current events," Cardin growled as Qrow held him back, "but we just got our asses kicked, pal!" 

"Look, I'm not blind to what's going on," Mercury snapped, "but I cannot authorize that kind of action. I'm sorry."

At that, Summer shrugged. It was true that Mercury was technically in charge since this mission was being backed by Ozpin-Salem. However, being a former warrant officer and remembering the finer details of this mission, she knew where the real chain of command lied. "Well, I believe," Summer said as she turned her attention to Qrow, "that Corporal Branwen has authority here."

Summer smirked when she saw Mercury frown at the idea that Qrow was in charge. Pointing at the marine, Mercury scoffed and said, "Corporal Branwen is...in charge? Since when?"

"This operation is under military jurisdiction and Branwen is next in chain of command. Am I right, Corporal?" 

Summer stared right at Qrow, already knowing the answer. Qrow, realizing she was right, sighed deeply and nodded his head. He had the look of a man who knew that he had the responsibility but didn't want it. Summer couldn't blame him; Ironwood was clearly the better, more natural leader. 

"Yeah," Qrow reluctantly said, "Yeah, that's right."

Mercury looked less than pleased with Qrow's answer. Turning to Summer, Mercury, with his hands on his waist as if he were a disappointed parent, said, "Yeah...okay, look, Summer-"

"-Yes?" Summer said, preparing herself for more bullshit. 

"This is a multimillion-lien installation, okay? He can't make that kind of decision. He's just a grunt. No offense."

Qrow frowned, not liking how he was being talked down upon. Thankfully, he seemed to be doing a good job of restraining himself. Summer knew that had Mercury said that to either Cardin or Winter, he'd be joining Caroline Cordovin in being knocked out. "None taken," Qrow growled, clearly having taken offense. Then, into his helmet's radio comms, he said, "Bree, do you copy?"

/

/

Setting: The Atlesian bullhead, parked outside the bio-dome area in the LZ

Harriet Bree and Vine Zeki were busy doing the necessary maintenance for the bullhead. Although the bullhead could handle the intense amounts of snow in the Solitas tundra, the two marines still needed to do their routine examination of the ship. After all, it was their only way back to the main airship. 

As Harriet was testing out the bullhead controls in the cockpit, she heard Qrow's voice come on through the radio. When she heard him ask if she copied, Bree reached for the radio and responded, "Standing by."

/

/

"Prep for dust off," Qrow continued, "We're gonna need immediate evac."

/

/

_Evac? What happened? I guess they found the settlers and need help carrying them back to the bio-dome. Hopefully, that's all that happened._

"Roger. On our way."

/

/

With the two pilots on their way, Qrow turned to the group to address them all. Summer smiled; although he clearly didn't want the responsibility, it looked like he was stepping up to lead the group. Although she was wary of his ability to lead the group, knowing that he was the marine who drank booze as soon as he woke up from hypersleep and that he was the only one who fell asleep during the combat drop, she'd rather the group be led by him than Mercury Black. _Honestly, everyone else in this group would be a better leader than Mercury Black. Even Blake._

"I say we take off," Qrow said, much to Mercury's displeasure, "nuke the site from orbit. It's the only way to be sure." He then turned to Summer and nodded at her, acknowledging that this was her plan. Summer smiled again and nodded back at him. After not being believed by the Atlesian and Ozpin-Salem higher-ups when she told her story, as well as being laughed at by the Atlesian marines when they first learned about the Grimm, it was an amazing feeling for Summer to have someone agree with her. 

"Let's do it," Qrow added. He then gestured for the group to exit the APC to await for the bullhead's arrival. 

* * *

QROW BRANWEN

Setting: Outside a courthouse in Mantle

Time: Several years earlier, before Qrow joined the Atlas military

Even though she was several feet away from him, Qrow could still tell that his foster mother, Maria Calavera, was pissed off at him. He couldn't blame her; after getting arrested for starting a fight in a bar over reasons he couldn't even remember, he'd be angry too if he was in Maria's position. As Maria approached him, he felt his fight-or-flight response kick in. Fight was not an option, so a big part of him wanted to just flee the scene and avoid the inevitable, expletive-filled rant about how he turned out to be such a disappointment. 

_Oh, who am I kidding,_ Qrow thought, _if you run now, where will you go when you need a place to stay? Just suck it up and take the lecture like a man._

When Maria reached him, Qrow immediately braced himself. Knowing his foster mother, he wouldn't be surprised if the first thing she did was smack him in the back of his head. Even though she was short, she always found a way to make the distance. 

Instead, Qrow heard Maria sigh, then tap the ground with the wooden cane she always brought with her. "How are you doing, son?" she said, strangely without anger. 

"I'm fine, I guess," Qrow answered with a shrug, "Were you the one who paid the bail?"

"What do you think, son?" Qrow cringed when he detected a hint of annoyance in Maria's tone. Immediately, he regretted even asking that question, because the more he thought about it, the more he realized that no one else would be willing to bail him out. It's not like he had many friends or family to turn to.

"Sorry...I guess you're mad at me for getting into trouble again."

Maria sighed a second time. She then turned around and, with her back turned to Qrow, she said, "Let's talk about this over breakfast. Food first...lecture later." Maria then started walking away towards a nearby diner. 

Qrow silently nodded to that and followed Maria. Although he was still expecting to be chewed out by Maria, he was hungry as well. The food being served in jail didn't exactly hit the spot. 

/

/

Despite how worried Qrow was that Maria would be furious with him, they spent most of breakfast just silently eating their food. Maria was focused entirely on her pancakes, not mentioning Qrow's antics at all ever since they entered the diner. Although Qrow wanted to keep things this way, somehow, not getting lectured by Maria seemed to make him even more nervous. As if he was just delaying the inevitable. So, foolishly, Qrow decided to beat her to it. 

"Are you upset with me?" Qrow asked, looking up from his bacon and eggs. Maria quickly looked up at him...then went back to eating her breakfast. Feeling annoyed that she was just avoiding the issue, Qrow pressed on. "Come on, Maria, I know you're upset with me-"

"-of course I'm upset with you, boy," Maria suddenly interrupted. She quickly took another bite of her pancakes before setting her fork down. "Why wouldn't I be? Here you are...a grown adult...getting arrested for public drunkenness and starting fights with strangers. I wonder what your parents would think if they learned about what you did."

"But you are my mom-"

"-not me, boy...your real parents."

 _Ouch...you didn't have to go there._ Although Qrow didn't want to show it, he felt hurt by that mention of his biological parents. It's not like he knew them well; when he was ten, according to the authorities, they had died in a bullhead accident. No one could have seen it coming, it was a freak accident. And he was too young to really remember them well. In fact, he technically knew Maria Calavera longer than he did his parents. But still, Maria playing the biological parents card...it stung hard.

"I don't know what they'd think," Qrow said, "Too young to remember them-"

"-well, you may have been. But I knew them. Victoria and Jason Branwen. They were good friends of mine, back when I could still see. Now, I'm not trying to say they were perfect. Both of them were young and...well...you make mistakes when you're young. Just like you. But here's the thing, son...they eventually grew up. When will you?" 

_And there it is...the lecture._ Qrow sighed, not sure how he could respond to that. It's not like he was unaware that his behavior was brash and stupid. He may act like a fool but he wasn't braindead. 

Maria pushed her plate of pancakes away. "I know you think I'm being harsh...and I am being harsh. However, I only am because I believe you can do so much more. I know that you can be responsible, I've seen it-"

"-that's nice and all, Maria, but I don't think I've ever been responsible-"

"-oh, nonsense, boy. You don't give yourself enough credit. I remember, back when you were still in the academy, that you were part of a group project where no one got along. You always came home, complaining that your teammates always argued and that no progress was being made. And at some point, you got so fed up with the lack of work, that you had to call each member out on their behavior. You took the hard step of stepping up and forcing the group to work their differences out and come together."

Qrow smiled at that. It was a group project that made up most of their final grade for that class. He wasn't sure how he did it but he was able to get his bickering teammates to work together, despite each person hating the other. He hated having to step up since, unbeknownst to Maria, he was hoping to just let his teammates do the work for him. "That was school. I had to do that so I wouldn't fail."

"Even so, boy...you showed initiative. You showed you could lead. And, even though you didn't want that responsibility...you still took on the role like a man. I know you may not think much about your time in the academy but, I can see your potential for greatness, Qrow. You just need to believe in yourself more."

"You really think that?"

"Of course! I'm your mother! Now, don't take this the wrong way and think that you won't get a lecture when we get back home...but I want you to remember that I think you are capable of so much more if you just applied yourself."

Qrow smiled at that. Although he didn't like the idea that he was still going to face punishment later on that day, it was nice to hear that Maria believed in him. 

* * *

Setting: Outside the APC

Time: A few minutes after Qrow called for the bullhead crew to pick the group up...

Despite how cold it was outside the confines of the APC, the group was willing to bear it in order to be ready for extraction. The group was all dressed for the harsh winter weather (Blake was wearing an oversized jacket that was meant for the marines) and were carrying what they could from the APC. Since Cordovin was still knocked out, the group had to bring her out on a stretcher. Qrow, Cardin, Summer, Mercury, and Blake helped with moving Cordovin while Winter Schnee kept guard. She was in attack mode at the moment, ready to blast at anything that even resembled a Grimm. 

Qrow, due to the fact he had assumed command just recently, was already feeling the pressure. Summer could sense it, just from the way he moved and how he talked. "Let's go," he said, his voice tinged with apprehension, "Pick it up, Winchester. Pick it up, baby." Although he was just trying to get the group to move along, it was clear he wasn't doing so well. Summer couldn't help but feel sorry for the man. 

"All right," Qrow continued, finding a spot in the snow that was stable enough for Cordovin, "Set her down here." Gently, the group lowered the stretcher down. Despite the cold, Cordovin was still out of it. 

After making sure the coast was clear and that everyone was ready to leave, Qrow went ahead and ignited a flare for Harriet and Vine to see. He then tossed it a few feet away from the group. Now...they had to play the waiting game. 

/

/

Setting: Bullhead, bio-dome LZ 

It didn't take that long for Harriet Bree and Vine Zeki to warm-up the bullhead. Just a few minutes after Qrow called it in, they were ready to take off and pick up the group. Harriet was already in the cockpit while Vine was outside, finishing up the last few tasks before takeoff. 

"Move it, Zeki," Bree said through her comms, "We're rolling."

Vine managed to finish up his final task just as he heard Bree call for him. He then ran back to the bullhead to take his seat. The bullhead already started humming while he was running, the sign that Bree was ready to go and was just waiting for him to close the ramp. 

Just as Vine reached the end of the bullhead's ramp, he felt something sticky brush his right hand. Turning to where his hand touched the ramp, he saw that he had placed his hand on some type of...saliva? Goo? Slime? Vine couldn't figure out what it was that he had just touched. It seemed harmless since the material wasn't doing anything to his skin, but it still concerned him since he had no idea what the substance was. 

"Hold on a second," Vine said as he brushed the sticky material off his hand, "There's something-"

"-Just get up here!"

Vine looked around the bullhead hangar, hoping he could see what left this material behind. When he saw that there was nothing in the area that stood out, he gave up the search. Although he wanted to know what this substance was, he needed to focus on the mission first. 

"I'm in," Vine said, "Ramp closing."

 _Hopefully, it's all nothing,_ Vine thought as he grabbed the control pad for the bullhead. He closed the ramp just as he felt the bullhead start to rise from the ground. 

Now fully up in the air, Harriet began flying towards the processing station. She was hoping that when she got there, she would see that her colleagues had rescued all the settlers of Hadley's Hope.

/

/

Several minutes had passed by to the point that the group was starting to wonder what was taking so long. Seeing that the other flare was going out, Qrow ignited another one and tossed it in the same direction. 

It seemed like perfect timing since as soon as the flare hit the ground, the group saw the bullhead approaching their area. Summer smiled; things seemed to be finally going her way. 

/

/

Harriet felt that something was off. Vine still hadn't joined her in the co-pilot seat since they took off from the LZ. Although the flight to the processing station didn't necessarily need a co-pilot's assistance since it was just a few miles away, she was wondering what Vine was doing in the other parts of the bullhead. It wasn't like there was much to do in the bullhead anyways, especially since it was just the two of them onboard. 

"Zeki?" Harriet said into her comms, "Goddamn it". No response. Now, she was starting to get worried. 

Suddenly, she heard the the doors behind her opening. Annoyed that Vine made her wait, Harriet turned around to berate him. "Well, where the fuck-"

Harriet immediately stopped talking when she saw the beast standing behind her. It was just as how Summer Rose described it in the files given to the marines to study; black tar-like skin, white skull-like head. It didn't take much to figure out what happened to Vine...especially when Harriet saw the tattered, bloodied remains of an Atlesian Marine uniform in the Grimm's claws. 

_Well...fuck._ Immediately, Harriet reached for her sidearm. She only managed to pull her gun out before the Grimm rushed forward and ripped her apart. As she died, her last thought was that it was strange to see her own blood splatter the cockpit windows. 

/

/

Summer's smile dropped when she saw the bullhead begin to wobble. It wasn't slowing down to land and, much to her horror, was descending way too fast. The rest of the group noticed the bullhead's erratic movements as well. Knowing just how good a pilot Harriet was, Qrow knew there had to be something off.

Suddenly, the bullhead hit a hill of snow and ice. Part of the landing gear was torn away and the bullhead began to tumble over. If Harriet was still flying, she had lost complete control just from hitting the hill. 

"RUN!" Summer shouted. The group scattered as the bullhead toppled uncontrollably. It exploded as it barreled towards the group, becoming a roaring mix of fire and debris. Summer grabbed Blake and took cover next to Qrow. Winter and Mercury jumped into a nearby ditch. As they did, they dragged Cordovin into the pit with them. Cardin stumbled to safety behind a boulder. 

The destroyed bullhead missed the group but kept on barreling forward due to the momentum. The group watched the fiery wreck continue in its direction, before it finally was stopped when it slammed into both the APC and part of the processing station. The explosion was loud and deafening and soon, a great deal of the station had caught fire. Meanwhile, the entire APC went up in flames as soon as the bullhead crashed into it. 

After the initial explosion, Qrow stood up and began checking on the rest of the group. Thankfully, no one had gotten hurt, including Cordovin. 

Still, seeing the crashed bullhead was just another horrible event that occurred on this cursed day. Summer felt like she jinxed them; she was already celebrating, even before the bullhead picked them up. She was starting to wonder if the Brothers had something against her or if she did something wrong in a past life and was being punished for it. 

Cardin wasn't faring any better. Dismayed by what just happened, he grabbed a smoking piece of the bullhead that had barely missed him. Realizing that Harriet and Vine was their only way of getting the group to safety, far away from the Grimm, Cardin chucked the bullhead piece away in anger. "Well, that's great," he sarcastically groaned, "That's just fucking great, man. Now what the fuck are we supposed to do? We're in some real pretty shit now, man-"

Qrow grabbed Cardin by the collar and shot him with a stern look, shutting the panicking soldier up. His look of anger and disgust was enough to put the fear of the gods in anyone. "Are you finished?" Qrow snapped at Cardin. Admitting defeat, Cardin nodded his head, making Qrow let him go. 

As Cardin began sulking to himself, Qrow joined Summer, who was still watching over Blake. Feeling worried for the two, Qrow turned to Summer and asked, "You all right?"

Summer nodded to that, not wanting to talk about how she was wondering if she was just cursed. With that, Qrow turned back to the wreckage and began looking around to see if there was anything he could salvage from the APC and bullhead wreckage. There wasn't much left from the explosion but it was worth looking around anyways.

As the others recovered from what just happened, Summer turned to Blake. The little girl was staring off into the distance, watching the bullhead and APC continue to burn away. "I guess we're not gonna be leaving now, right?" Blake said sadly.

"I'm sorry, Shadow," Summer said as she pulled the girl in for a hug. There wasn't much Summer could think of to say in that moment to comfort Blake. It pained her to have to say the truth. 

For what it was worth, Blake silently nodded at Summer's words, understanding the situation. "You don't have to be sorry," she said, "It wasn't your fault."

As the two watched the bullhead, they heard Cardin grumbling behind them. Cardin was already in panic mode since surviving the ambush in the Grimm nest. Now, it seemed like this was what finally pushed him over the edge. Although she had her back turned to the marine, Summer could hear Cardin start to yell at the others. "That's it, man!" he shouted as he paced around the snow, "Game over, man! Game over! What the fuck are we gonna do now?! What are we gonna do-"

"-Maybe we could build a fire!" Mercury shouted back at him, sarcastically, "Sing a couple of songs! Why don't we try that?!" Cardin then shoved past the silver-haired businessman, not liking his tone with him. 

"We'd better get back because it'll be dark soon," Blake said to Summer, trying her best to ignore the men behind her, "and they mostly come at night...mostly."

At that, Summer looked up at the sky. Suddenly, Blake's words sent chills down her spine when she saw the big full moon in the distance. Just when things couldn't get any worse...

* * *

Setting: Operations room, Hadley's Hope bio-dome

Time: Night

Heeding Blake's warning about the Grimm's activity during night, the survivors made the long walk back to the bio-dome and regrouped with Penny Polendina. They then barricaded themselves in the operations room of the bio-dome, while also making sure there was a path back to the Medlab. Just to play things safe, the marines reinforced the barricade that the settlers had built during the initial struggle with the Grimm while Penny closed the shutters so that nobody from outside could see them. 

In addition to the group securing themselves inside the bio-dome, the marines brought in all the equipment they could salvage from the APC and bullhead wreckage. Sadly, due to the bullhead crash destroying most of the equipment that was inside the APC, there wasn't much to bring in. Far less than what the marines had been packing earlier while they were on patrol.

"That's everything, right?" Qrow asked as he checked a slightly-damaged rifle. Winter and Cardin nodded glumly, unhappy with how little equipment they were working with. "All right...well, this is absolutely everything that we could salvage out of the APC wreckage. We got four pulse rifles with about 50 rounds each. That ain't so good. We got, uh, 15 of these M-40 grenades-hey, don't touch that!"

Blake Belladonna, who had reached over to grab a grenade out of curiosity, immediately put the grenade down and backed away. Summer chuckled at the girl's curiosity while Qrow just shook his head, slightly annoyed. 

"That's dangerous, honey," Qrow said, sternly. Blake, heeding Qrow's words, gave him a thumbs up. Turning her attention to items that were less dangerous, she picked up Qrow's helmet that he left on the table and put it on her head. Although he was still annoyed that she was touching the gear, Qrow let her keep it. 

Turning her attention to the weapons, Summer noticed that the flamethrowers were in the worst condition. Just from what she was seeing, only one of them looked functional. "Is that the only working flamethrower?" Summer asked. 

Qrow nodded his head, even more disappointed than before. "Yeah. It's only half full, but it's functional. Got another one, it's damaged...I don't know about that one." Then, surprising Summer just a bit, Qrow put on a smile and turned his attention to four big crates on the other side of the room. Despite them being slightly burnt, the crates were in good condition. Summer had no idea what was inside them so she waited for Qrow to tell her. "But the good news," Qrow continued, "we got four of these robot sentries with display and scanners intact. They really kick ass. I think they'll come in handy."

 _Hmm...turrets, basically,_ Summer thought, _That should come in handy. But still...this doesn't seem like a lot, especially the fact that we only have four rifles and one flamethrower. It wouldn't take much for those things to overrun us._

"How long after we're declared overdue can we expect a rescue?" Summer asked. She didn't want to dampen the mood even further but she wanted an honest answer, especially considering that they didn't have enough gear to mount a defense of their position. 

Qrow paused for a few seconds. He stared at Summer, clearly uncomfortable with the answer he had in mind. With a heavy sigh, he then said, "Seventeen days."

That struck a cord in the room. Summer had a feeling that the answer was going to be something like that. She wasn't sure if they could even last one day. However, she felt that her bad luck was going to guarantee that Qrow's answer was going to at least be more than a day. Winter almost had the same look Summer did. It seemed like she was expecting the worst possible answer as well.

Cardin, however, had the look of a man who was expecting good news from Qrow. He looked utterly betrayed after hearing how long it would take for rescue to arrive. "Seventeen days?" he said, going back into panic mode, "Hey, man, I don't wanna rain on your parade, but we're not gonna last 17 hours! Those things are gonna come in here like they did before. They're gonna come in here-"

"-Winchester," Summer said, trying to cut Cardin off. 

"-and they're gonna get us-"

"-Winchester!" After raising her voice at him, Cardin immediately backed down. He wasn't expecting Summer to yell at him like that. Confronting the marine, Summer pointed to Blake and said, "This little girl survived longer than that with no weapons and no training. Right?"

Summer and Cardin turned their attention to Blake, who was still playing around with Qrow's helmet. Noticing that the room's attention was on her, Blake turned to Cardin. She then saluted the man, making Summer chuckle slightly. 

Cardin was less than pleased. "Oh, sure," he whined, "Why don't you put her in charge?!"

"You'd better just start dealing with it, Winchester. Listen to me! Winchester, just deal with it because we need you. And I'm sick of your bullshit. Now, I want you to get on a terminal and call up some kind of floor plan file. Do you understand? Construction blueprints, I don't care. Just anything that shows the layout of this place. Are you listening?"

"Yeah," Cardin said as he took deep breaths, trying to calm himself down.

"I need to see air ducts. I need to see electrical access tunnels, sub-basements...every possible way into this complex. We don't have much time."

After hearing that time was working against them, Cardin nodded his head and slowly made his way to a nearby terminal. He still looked shaken but it looked like he was going to try to remain calm for the group. "Okay," he muttered, "Okay, I'm on it."

"Winchester...just relax."

At that, Cardin took another deep breath and walked away. Summer still wasn't sure if she could trust the man but she was at least satisfied that he was going to try to do his job. 

As soon as Cardin left, Penny stepped up to address the rest of the group. "I'll be in Medlab," she said, "I'll check on Cordovin and continue my analysis of the Grimm parasites."

"Fine," Summer said, "You do that."

As the android walked away, Summer couldn't help but stare her down. She still didn't trust that android, even with everything that's happened. 

* * *

Time: A few hours later...

Cardin Winchester, despite all the panicking he had done since the Grimm nest ambush, managed to pull himself together long enough to provide the group a floor plan of the settlement. It was detailed enough that Summer and the group felt like they were seeing the entire settlement, secret tunnels and all. Now that they had the plans, the group began working out a strategy against the Grimm. 

Right off the bat, Summer noticed something about the tunnels leading back to the processing station, which the group had renamed 'GRIMM NEST' on the floor plans. "So this service tunnel must be how they're moving back and forth," Summer said as she pointed to the tunnels on the plan. 

"That's right," Cardin added. As Cardin took over the presentation, Summer took the controls of the terminal and began moving it around, based on what Cardin's directions. "It moves from the processing station right into the sublevel here. Move the cursor on the terminal. Come down on that. Okay, come over. Hold. Go back. Okay, punch that in right there."

As Summer moved the floor plans around based on Cardin's directions, Qrow heard a slight bump from behind him. Turning around, he saw that it was Blake, who had jumped in order to see what was going on. Feeling sorry for the girl, he lifted her up and sat her right on the terminal. As he did, he noticed something on the floor plan. "No, it's back here," he said as he let go of Blake. Summer moved the cursor back, right to where Qrow pointed. 

"Okay," Summer said as she examined the spot Qrow pointed out, "Well, there's a pressure door at this end. Couldn't we put one of the remote sentry units in the tunnel and then seal that door?"

Qrow nodded his head, liking the idea. "Yeah, that'll work," he muttered, "but we gotta figure on them getting into the complex."

"That's right, so we repair more of the settlers' barricades, specifically at these two intersections." (Blake, who was slightly regretting being curious about what Summer and the marines were talking about, couldn't help but yawn at the conversation)

"Right."

"And weld plate steel over these ducts here...and here...and here. That way they can only come at us from these two corridors."

"All right. Then we put the other sentry units here...and here, right?"

"Right."

"Outstanding. Now all we need is a deck of cards to pass the time. All right, people. Let's move like we got a purpose."

"Affirmative," Cardin said as he began moving to the sentry guns.

"Affirmative," Blake said with another yawn. _So, blah, blah, blah, they seal the doors and put guns in the hallway,_ Blake thought to herself, _I thought they were going to talk about something cool, like use those cool Paladins to fight the monsters or something!_

* * *

Setting: Makeshift security room, operations center

Time: A few minutes later...

Thanks to Cardin's floor plans, the group now had a plan in place. It was relatively simple; seal the main tunnels being used by the Grimm and install the sentry guns to guard the doors. In addition, the group installed all their security cameras in the areas they felt were most vulnerable to a Grimm attack. In the makeshift security station that the marines created, Qrow Branwen was watching the monitors for any Grimm sightings. The security station's set-up was just like in the APC, with each monitor on top of another. In total, there were ten surveillance cameras that Qrow had to keep an eye on. 

After making sure each camera was working, Qrow got to work on the sentry guns. He turned his attention to two laptops that were remotely connected to the guns. He then updated the settings so that the guns would know to fire at the Grimm. Due to the fact they didn't have enough information on the Grimm for the more advanced settings, Qrow instead made sure the guns would fire at any large object that was moving in front of it. 

/

/

Setting: One of the tunnels leading to the operations center/Medlab

Cardin Winchester and Winter Schnee managed to finish setting up two of the four sentry guns in the hallway. Immediately feeling unsafe just by being in this area, Cardin scrambled away from the guns to contact Qrow. As he did, he activated the sentry guns, which was the last step on their end. 

"Do your thing, baby," Cardin said as he backed away from the sentry guns, "Come on, Schnee. Let's get the hell outta here!" Turning to his radio comms, he then said, "Winchester here. A and B sentries are in place and keyed."

/

/

"Roger. Stand by. Arming now. Test it, Winchester."

/

/

"Do it," Cardin said to Winter. At that, Winter grabbed the empty crates that had contained the sentry guns. They were relatively light without the guns inside. 

"Fire in the hole!" Winter shouted. She then chucked the crates over, which landed a few feet away from the turrets. Immediately, the sentry guns got to work and tore up the crates as if they were nothing. The bullets, designed to be armor piercing, easily turned the crates into Swiss cheese.

With a successful test run, Cardin immediately retreated back behind the other side of the tunnel doors. "Okay, great," he muttered, "Let's get the hell outta here! We're sealing the tunnel!" 

Winter joined him shortly after the successful test run with the sentry guns. Cardin then sealed the doors, leading to both of them using their welding tools to seal the doors shut. 

* * *

Setting: The other tunnel leading to the operations center/Medlab 

As the two worked on the doors, Blake and Mercury were keeping busy by moving supplies around. The operations center and Medlab was now their fortress of safety, so the group began treating it as such. Weapons were placed in the operations room while food and other essentials were stored in the Medlab. 

While Cardin and Winter were sealing the opposite tunnel, Summer and Qrow were in charge of sealing this particular tunnel. Luckily, there was already a fully-formed barricade for this tunnel, the one that the settlers had set up during the initial Grimm outbreak. The pre-existing barricade cut down on their time in sealing up the tunnel. 

"For what it's worth," Qrow said as he finished welding up the doors. He wasn't sure if this was going to work but it was better than nothing. He and Summer were hoping the Grimm weren't strong enough to push their way through the doors. Although they knew that their luck could get worse, especially with everything that's happened today, they were hoping that the Grimm at least didn't have super strength or the ability to punch through solid metal. 

With the doors sealed, Summer looked to her list of notes on what to do next. She crossed off the task of sealing the tunnels, as well as organizing the group's supplies. As she flipped the page on her notepad, Qrow turned to her and pulled something out of his pocket. This caught Summer's attention. 

"Here," he said as he held up what appeared to be a wristwatch. Curiously enough, it wasn't displaying time. "I want you to put this on."

"What's it for?" Summer asked.

"It's a locator. Then I can find you anywhere in the complex on this." Qrow then held up a separate device, which looked like one of the motion trackers that the marines used. Only this device displayed the distance between itself and the wrist-locator. "It's just a precaution."

Summer smiled at that. Although she didn't know this marine very well, it still made her happy that Qrow was thinking of her safety. "Thanks," Summer said as she put the locator on. 

Qrow shrugged. "Doesn't mean we're engaged or anything," he said with a smirk. Although Summer chuckled at what he said, she felt a slight blush coming on. 

_Oh crap, don't read too much into what he said, Summer...jeez. A cute guy does one nice thing for you and suddenly, you think he's boyfriend material._

As Summer was caught up in her questionable thoughts, Qrow looked over to the notepad that she was holding. "All right, what's next?" Luckily for Summer, Qrow didn't pick up on what she was thinking. 

That said...he may or may not have been thinking of her in the same way...

* * *

Setting: Medlab (now turned into a makeshift living space)

Time: Night

Although the group didn't have much time to fortify themselves before nightfall hit, they still managed to get a lot accomplished. The main tunnel doors were sealed, sentry guns have been set up to guard their base, and all supplies in the area have been collected and accounted for. By the end of the day, everyone was exhausted. However, they didn't want to let their guards down, knowing just how dangerous the threat in the area was. No one was going to sleep tonight, that's what everyone agreed.

With two exceptions. There wasn't much the group could do for Caroline Cordovin since she was still out cold, so they decided to just let her rest in the Medlab. Then there was Blake. Although Summer could see that the little faunus girl wanted to help the group out, she also noticed Blake's drooping eyes and head. The girl needed her sleep, which was why Summer was carrying her into the Medlab. She walked by Cordovin, then gently laid Blake down on an empty bed. 

"Last stop," Summer said quietly as she tucked Blake into bed, "Get in. Scoot down. That's good. Now, you lie here and have a nap. You're very tired."

Blake whimpered, not liking the idea of sleeping while they were in a crisis. "I don't want to," she whispered, "I have scary dreams."

Summer sighed. She's dealt with this situation before, with Ruby when she had nightmares. Thinking back to how she calmed Ruby down back in the day, Summer gently took the Ilia Amitola doll that Blake had been carrying around. Although this was just a toy, Summer assumed that Blake was holding onto it for strength. Ruby did the same with her toy scythe that she got for Christmas when she was five. "Well, I bet Ilia doesn't have scary dreams," Summer said as she held the doll up to Blake, "Let's take a look. Nope. Nothing bad in there. See? Maybe you could just try to be like her?"

"Rose, she doesn't have bad dreams...because she's just a piece of plastic."

Summer chuckled. _Right, she's 10 or 11 years old, not 3,_ Summer thought to herself, _Well, it was worth a shot._ "Right. I'm sorry, Shadow."

Wanting to at least make Blake feel comfortable in the room, Summer grabbed a mobile heater and turned it towards Blake. She then turned it on. It wasn't too hot but it at least made the two feel warm enough to forget that they were in the middle of the coldest environment in all of Remnant. 

"My mommy always said there were no monsters," Blake suddenly said. Summer turned back to the girl, surprised. Earlier today, Blake didn't even want to talk about her parents. Now here she was, comfortable enough to talk about her mom. "No real ones...but there are."

"Yes, there are, aren't there?"

"Why do they tell little kids that?"

"Well...most of the time it's true."

"Did one of those things grow inside her?"

Summer frowned, unsure how to answer that. Due to what happened with the settlement, there were only two possible answers to that question; cocooned or died fighting. Summer didn't want to further traumatize the kid, especially knowing that she lost her entire family to the Grimm. "I don't know, Shadow. That's the truth."

"Isn't that how babies come? I mean, people babies? They grow inside you-"

"-no, no, that's very different."

"Did you ever have a baby?"

Summer hesitated at first. It wasn't too long ago that she was speaking with Mercury Black about the whereabouts of Ruby. "Yes, I did. I had a little girl."

"Where is she?"

"...she's gone."

"...you mean dead."

Although Blake didn't mean to, she was making Summer relive that moment where Mercury told her the awful truth. That Ruby had gone missing during a mission in Mistral. That the terrorist organization known as the White Fang were involved. That even though she was never officially declared dead, a funeral was still held for her in Patch. It was right then that Summer realized she still hadn't properly processed what happened to Ruby. Then again, she was still dealing with the trauma of her own experience with the Grimm. There were all sorts of events and traumatic experiences in her life that she still had to deal with and they just seemed to keep stacking up. 

That was something she would eventually have to deal with. For now, she couldn't talk about this, especially when the group needed her thinking straight. In addition, she was not about to burden Blake by having her act as her therapist. Not when Blake was clearly still dealing with her own issues. 

Wanting to move on from this topic, Summer took off the wrist locator that Qrow gave her. "Here," Summer said as she placed the device around Blake's wrist, "Take this. For luck." Although Blake didn't know what it was that Summer just gave her, she still smiled at the fact that she was being cared for. 

Summer turned off the light and stood up, ready to rejoin the marines in watching over the fortress. As she stood up, Blake reached out to her. She was suddenly scared at the idea of being alone. "Don't go...please," Blake whimpered. 

"Shadow, I'm gonna be right in the next room. And you see that camera right up there?" Summer pointed to a corner of the Medlab. Blake turned and saw a surveillance camera observing the room. The camera's feed was directly linked to the monitors that Qrow was using earlier when he was testing the sentry guns with Winter and Cardin. "I can see you right through that camera all the time to see if you're safe. I'm not gonna leave you, Shadow. I mean that. That's a promise."

"You promise?"

"I cross my heart."

"And hope to die?"

"...and hope to die."

Suddenly, Blake reached forward and pulled Summer in for a hug. Summer, although she was startled at first, hugged the frightened girl back. Summer may not be the girl's mother but as she hugged Blake, she realized that she was the closest thing to a mother-figure that Blake had as of now. And she was going to do everything in her power to make sure Blake was safe. 

She couldn't be there for Ruby...but she could be here for this girl. 

Summer gently laid Blake back down, breaking off their hug. "Now go to sleep, and since you have bad dreams...don't dream."

Although she was still scared, Blake managed to crack a smile. Just then, she reached out and touched Summer's nose. "Boop," she whispered.

Summer laughed at that. "You sneak."

Summer then stood up to leave the room. As she did, Blake looked back at her wrist, still unsure what it was that Summer gave her. Despite that, she held it close to her, feeling as if this was the only thing keeping her safe. 

* * *

Setting: Medlab (other side of the center)

With Blake sleeping in the next room, Summer Rose rejoined the others. It didn't take long to quickly catch up on what they were discussing; Penny, who had been left behind to study the Grimm parasites that were found in the Medlab, managed to make some discoveries about the creatures.

"The molecular acid oxidizes after the creature's death completely neutralizing it," Penny said as she pointed to a dead Grimm parasite. It was the same one she had been dissecting before the group left to the Grimm nest. 

Summer huffed in annoyance. Although it was great to hear that Penny made some discoveries about the Grimm, it didn't seem like she discovered anything useful. Truthfully, Summer was hoping to hear that Penny discovered a weakness, or at least some way to fight back. She was also willing to settle for information on how they moved and strategized. "Penny, you know, that's very interesting," Summer groaned, "but it doesn't really get us anywhere, does it? I'm trying to figure out what we're dealing with here. Now, let's go through it again. They grab the colonists, they move them over to the processing station and they immobilize them to be hosts for more of these. Which would mean that there would have to be a lot of these parasites, right? One for each colonist...that's over 100, at least."

"Yes, that follows." Penny said with a nod. 

"But each one of these things comes from an egg, right? So who's laying these eggs?"

At that, Penny shrugged. "I'm not sure," she said, "It must be something we haven't seen yet."

Cardin Winchester, who had been listening in on the conversation, suddenly perked up as if an idea just popped up in his head. "Hey, maybe it's like an ant hive?"

"Bees, man," Winter said, rolling her eyes at Cardin, "Bees have hives."

"You know what I mean! There's, like, one female that runs the whole show."

"Ah yes, the queen," Penny chirped. Although she didn't say it, Summer could see the gears whirring in Penny's head. As if she was forming a hypothesis based on Cardin's suggestion.

"Yeah, the mama," Cardin continued, "She's badass, man. I mean, big-"

"-these things ain't ants, stupid," Winter snapped. 

"I know that!"

Ignoring the two bickering marines, Summer turned to their android assistant. Although it was great that Penny managed to make some discoveries, she didn't feel comfortable keeping the parasites within the fortress. Besides, it didn't seem like they were going to find out anything new from the parasites. "Penny, I want these specimens destroyed as soon as you're finished with them," Summer said, pointing to the glass containers that held the still-living Grimm parasites, "Is that clear?"

At that, Penny shifted a little, uncomfortable with that order. Before Summer could ask what was wrong, Penny said, "Mr. Black gave instructions that they were to be kept alive in stasis for return to the company labs."

Summer couldn't believe what she was hearing. Her mouth almost dropped at the mere mention of the silver-haired businessman giving out orders that were unknown to the rest of the group. Even Cardin and Winter looked surprised. 

Feeling all the stares in the room, Penny looked down, disappointed in herself. "I'm sorry...he was very specific about it."

Summer could only stare at Penny. This didn't make sense to her; Mercury Black specifically promised that they were here to exterminate the Grimm. Now, he was backpedaling his promise? It didn't feel right, especially since he even brought along a unit of Atlesian Marines with the mission to wipe the Grimm out. 

As Summer tried to process this new reveal, an idea came to her. An idea so dark and twisted that it made her stomach curl. If Mercury was lying about exterminating the Grimm...she began to wonder what else he was lying about. Turning to Penny, Summer said, "Penny, I need you to do me a favor."

"I'm sorry, Miss Rose, I can't destroy the parasites-"

"-not that. I need you to bring me the settlers' logs. Specifically the one from the family that discovered the Grimm eggs."

"What are you hoping to find?"

"Not sure yet...but I have a gut feeling that there's something we missed out on that's in those logs."

* * *

Setting: Medlab (kitchen area)

Summer still couldn't believe it. Even after everything they had gone through with the Grimm, here was Mercury Black trying to explain to her that not only were the parasites worth saving, that they could make a buck out of them once they made it back to Mantle. _If we even managed to make it back home,_ Summer thought to herself. The level of arrogance that this man had, to the point that he was already certain that they'd be rescued and was making plans afterwards, disgusted her. 

Although Qrow, Winter, and Cardin offered to be with her as she spoke to Mercury, Summer turned them down. She wanted to speak with Mercury alone, especially since this was the guy who convinced her to even come out to Hadley's Hope in the first place. This was the man who promised to her that they wouldn't be bringing any of the creatures back to civilization, that they were here to wipe the Grimm out, not to study or collect them. Although she was pissed beyond belief, she wanted to hear the man explain himself. 

"Look, those two specimens that are still living, they are worth millions to the bio-weapons division, right?" Mercury said. Summer resisted the urge to punch him. Dozens of people were dead, even people in their group, and all this man could talk about was liens. "Now, if you're smart...we can both come out of this heroes and we will be set up for life-"

"-you're crazy, Mercury," Summer interrupted, "Do you know that? Do you really think you can get a dangerous organism like that past Atlas' strict quarantine procedures?"

Mercury shrugged, then flashed Summer a smug smile as if he had already thought of this ahead of time. "How can they impound it if they don't know about it?"

"But they will know about it, Mercury...from me. Just like they'll know that you were responsible for the deaths of 157 settlers."

That immediately shut Mercury up. Summer stared the man down; after reading the settler logs that she ordered Penny to retrieve for her, she discovered that it was no coincidence that the Hadley's Hope settlers found the Grimm cave. Everything, from the Belladonna family being sent out to explore the tundra, to security chief Vernal bringing the Grimm eggs back to the settlement. It was all under orders. And seeing the name of the person who issued those orders didn't surprise her one bit. 

Mercury stood up, not liking how Summer was staring at him. "Now, wait a second-"

"-you sent Blake's family to that cave."

"You're wrong!"

"I just checked the settlers' logs. Directive dated 6-12-79, signed Black, Mercury J. You sent them out there, and you didn't even warn them. Why didn't you warn them, Mercury?"

Mercury looked like he was going to argue back. However, with Summer having written proof of his actions, he sighed in defeat. "Okay, look," he said, sounding like he was trying to do damage control, "Hear me out...what if that cave didn't even exist? Do you ever think about that? I didn't know! So now if I went and made a major security situation out of it, everybody steps in, administration steps in, and there's no exclusive rights for anybody! Nobody wins! So I made a decision, and it was wrong. It was a bad call, Rose. It was a bad call."

"Bad call?"

Without a slight hint of remorse in his voice, Mercury nodded and said, "Right." 

That was the last straw. Suddenly, Summer grabbed the man by his jacket and shoved him against the window behind him. Mercury looked shocked as he didn't expect Summer to lash out on him like this. Meanwhile, the marines on the other side of the window looked concerned. 

"These people are dead, Mercury!" Summer shouted at the businessman, "Don't you have any idea what you've done here?! I'm gonna make sure that they nail you right to the wall for this. You're not gonna sleaze your way out of this one. Right to the wall!" At that, Summer let the man go. All of this could have been avoided had the Belladonnas not been ordered to explore the Grimm cave. Although she wanted to hurt this man for everything that's transpired, she wanted to see him taken down the legal way. She wanted to see him be humiliated for his actions. 

Summer turned to leave the room. As she did, Mercury chuckled, as if nothing had happened. "Rose, I..."

Summer stopped and turned to face Mercury, wondering what other bullshit excuse he had now. "You know, I expected more from you," he said, his smug grin back on his face, "I thought you'd be smarter than this."

"Well, I'm happy to disappoint you."

At that, Summer finally left the room, leaving Mercury alone to his thoughts. 

As the doors closed behind her, suddenly, the alarms started ringing. Immediately, Summer took off, fearing the worst had just happened. She ran off towards the operations center, where she saw Qrow, Winter, and Cardin all huddled around the computer station they had set up. Qrow was watching the monitors. He looked tense, worried about what was going on in the camera feeds. 

"What is it?" Cardin said, speaking for the group, "What's going on?"

"They're coming," Qrow said, keeping his eyes on the monitors. 

"Where?"

"In the tunnel. Here we go."

Suddenly, the four of them heard loud gunshots. It was the sentry guns opening fire at the Grimm invaders. On the computer monitors, Summer turned her attention to the one displaying the stats for the guns. The amount of ammo for each turret was going down fast. 

"'A' and 'B' gun tracking far end," Qrow said, "Multiple targets."

**'A' gun count: 365 rounds remaining**

"Look at those ammo counters go." Cardin muttered to himself. 

**'B' gun count: 221 rounds remaining**

"'B' gun's down 50%," Qrow muttered, starting to sound worried. 

"Man, it's a shooting gallery down there," Cardin added. 

**'B' gun CRITICAL: LOW AMMO**

"Sixty rounds left on 'B.' Forty. Twenty. Ten...'B' gun's dry."

**'A' gun CRITICAL: LOW AMMO**

"Twenty on 'A.' Ten. Five...that's it." As if on cue, the sounds of gunshots stopped. The room suddenly felt too quiet. 

"Jesus, they were wall-to-wall in there," Cardin said, amazed at how relentless the Grimm's invasion was. Even with the sentry guns firing at them, they continued to push forward, even as they were losing several members. 

The group despaired as both sentry guns ran out of ammo, meaning there was nothing stopping the Grimm from charging forward. Qrow and Summer braced themselves, hoping that they weren't strong enough to force their way through. Suddenly, loud banging noises could be heard coming from down that tunnel. They weren't entirely sure what was happening but it was safe to assume that it was the Grimm trying to force the tunnel doors to open. Fortunately for them, it didn't sound like the Grimm were making any progress through blunt force. 

"They're at the pressure door," Summer whispered. 

Cardin nodded. "Man, listen to that."

The four sighed in relief. Despite all the banging they were doing, the Grimm wasn't making a dent. It was the first bit of good news they've had since the ambush.

As the four continued to listen to the Grimm's futile attempts to force the tunnel doors to open, Penny's voice suddenly came through the radio. "Penny here," she said, "I'm afraid I have some bad news."

And just like that, the four were back to despairing over their situation. Cardin groaned out loud. "Well, that's a switch!"

* * *

Setting: Operations center (the shutters overlooking the entire settlement)

As the Grimm continued to pound away at the tunnel doors, Summer, Qrow, Winter, and Cardin joined Penny Polendina, who was staring out the shutters. Specifically, she was looking towards the processing station, right where the bullhead and the APC were destroyed. For the most part, the group wasn't sure what Penny was looking for, especially since the android hadn't told them yet. 

"It's very pretty, Penny," Summer said, slightly annoyed, "but what are we looking for-"

_FWISHHHHHHH!!!_

Catching the group off-guard, they all watched as a vent by the processing station suddenly blew up, sending smoke into the air. It was a bright explosion, almost blinding the group. 

"That's it," Penny pointed out, "Emergency venting."

Just then, it all came back to Summer. The reason why Mercury and her told the marines not to open fire inside the Grimm nest. However, not only did the marines get involved in a huge firefight inside the processing station...the bullhead and APC explosion caused even more damage to the primary heat exchangers in the area. And, according to Mercury, damage done to those exchangers could trigger a meltdown and explosion. Now, it was only a matter of time until the station detonated, taking them all down. 

"Oh, that's beautiful, man," Cardin groaned as he walked away to be by himself, "Oh, man, that...that just beats it all!"

Qrow groaned as well, realizing the implications behind the exploding vent. "How long till it blows?" Qrow asked, not even bothering to ask if there was another explanation.

"Four hours," Penny answered, "With a blast radius of 30 kilometers equal to about 40 megatons."

"Well...fuck...we got problems." 

Cardin kicked over a chair, frustrated that their situation somehow got even worse. "I don't believe this," he shouted, "I don't fucking believe this!"

"Schnee, close the shutters," Qrow said as he moved away from the windows. Winter did so. Even though she didn't say anything, she was just as nervous about the explosion as the rest of the group. She just didn't want to let it show. 

Turning to Penny, Summer asked, "Why can't we shut it down from here?" Summer reasoned that because they were in the operations room of the bio-dome, they could shut the reactors down remotely. Surely, a base like this would have that function. 

Unfortunately, Penny shook her head at that, having already considered that option. "I'm sorry," she said, "The bullhead crash caused too much damage. An overload is inevitable at this point."

Cardin snorted at Penny's words. "Oh, man, and I was getting short. Four more weeks and out! Now I'm gonna buy it on this rock! It ain't half fair, man-"

"Winchester, give us a fucking break!" Winter snapped. 

"Four more weeks! Oh, man..."

As Cardin continued to groan about their situation, Summer began thinking about other options. Now that they couldn't just wait for rescue to arrive, they now had to find a way to escape within the next few hours. Thinking back to how they got to Hadley's Hope, she suddenly remembered that their airship was still in the area, high up in the atmosphere. Although there were no bullheads available in the settlement that could help them reach the airship, Summer remembered that the airship had multiple bullheads in the hangar bay. If they couldn't fly up to the airship, they could connect with the airship and bring one of the spare bullheads down to pick them up.

"Well, we've got to get the other bullheads from the airship," Summer said, "I mean, there must be some way of bringing it down on remote-"

"-how?" Cardin interrupted, going back into panic mode, "The transmitter was on the APC! It's wasted!"

"Well, I don't care how, but we'd better think of something! We'd better think of a way!"

"Think of what?! We're fucked!"

"Shut up," Qrow growled at Cardin, not liking how he was losing control. 

"We're doomed-"

"-I SAID, SHUT UP!" Qrow shouted. Immediately, Cardin backed down, fearing Qrow's retaliation. After regaining control of the situation, Qrow turned to Penny. "What about the settlement transmitters? The uplink tower down at the other end. Why can't we use that?"

Penny, once again, shook her head. "No, I checked. The hardware in between here and there was damaged. We can't align the dish."

"Well, somebody's gonna have to go out there," Summer said, working around Penny's restrictions, "take a portable terminal, go out there and patch in manually."

Cardin scoffed, further irritating the group. Although no one could really blame him; going outside with the horde of Grimm roaming around was basically a suicide mission. "Yeah, sure," he snapped, "With those things running around? You can count me out!" (Penny: "I'll go.")

Qrow frowned. He wasn't expecting for Cardin to volunteer for this mission but hearing the man announce that he was too scared to even be considered pissed Qrow off. "Guess we can just count you out of everything. Right, Cardin?" (Penny: "I said I'll go.") 

"That's right, man! Why don't you go, man? You're the corporal-"

"-I'll go!" Penny said, raising her voice so the group could hear her.

Summer looked at Penny in shock, surprised that it was the android assistant who was volunteering for this suicide mission. "What did you say?" Summer said.

"I'll go. I mean, I'm the only one qualified to remote pilot the ship anyway."

Cardin smiled, liking the plan now. "Yeah, right, man," he said as he stared Penny down, "Polendina should go. Good idea!"

Penny frowned. It wasn't that she was scared of going out of the fortress by herself (although she was). It was the fact that Cardin seemed so eager to see her go, as if it was okay to send her outside since she was the only non-human in the group. "Believe me, I'd prefer not to. I may be synthetic, but I'm not stupid."

* * *

Setting: Operations center (area containing a pipeline that led to outside the bio-dome)

With Penny Polendina volunteering to manually contact the airship and bring down a bullhead for extraction, Winter Schnee and Summer Rose followed the floor plans to a pipeline that would lead straight to the settlement's uplink tower. Working quickly, Winter used her welding tools to cut open a hole in the pipe, a hole big enough for Penny to enter. She then removed the piece of metal away.

Penny then took a flashlight and peeked into the pipeline. Looking both ways, she sighed in relief when she saw that there was no Grimm hiding in the dark. With no danger present, Penny stepped into the pipe, ready to begin her long trek towards the uplink tower. 

"How long?" Summer asked Penny as the android gathered all the equipment she needed for the journey.

"This conduit runs almost to the uplink assembly," Penny answered, "Approximately 180 meters. Say 40 minutes to crawl down there."

"Right."

"An hour to patch in and align the antenna. Thirty minutes to prep the ship and about 50 minutes flight time."

"Damn...it's gonna be close."

Penny nodded. As she entered the pipeline, Winter cocked a pistol and handed it to Penny for self-defense. Penny took the gun...then quickly handed it to Summer. Although the chances of her encountering a Grimm was high, Penny didn't want to risk engaging it in combat. Fighting was something she wasn't programmed for. She would rather take her chances at evading the monsters. 

Winter grabbed the metal chunk she removed and placed it back over the hole. "Good luck," Summer said. Although she was still not sure if she could trust the android, right now, all she could do was hope Penny would succeed. Summer didn't like it but their lives were now in Penny's hands. 

"See you soon," Penny said through the pipeline walls, "Miss Schnee, watch your fingers."

"May the Brothers watch over you, girl," Winter said as she began welding the pipe shut. 

And just like that, Penny began shimmying her way down the pipeline. There was barely enough space for her to move her arms, making it a struggle just to move forward. However, despite how uncomfortable the space was and how it would make a normal human feel claustrophobic, Penny forged ahead, knowing that it was up to her to save everyone. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Based on: Aliens (1986)
> 
> Just a reminder, if you haven't done so already, go over to the "POLL 1" chapter and vote for your favorite of the movie selections! Whichever gets the most votes will be the next full-length, movie-to-RWBY adaptation, right after I finish work on "Grimms".
> 
> AN: Qrow's parents, Jason and Victoria, were named after both of Qrow's voice actors (Vic Mignogna and Jason Liebrecht). Also, please don't mention the Vic drama here, this is just a reference.


	26. Grimms (Part 6)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The group anxiously waits for Penny Polendina to finish her mission in using the settlement's communications systems to make contact with their airship. As they sit and wait, evil forces from inside and outside the complex end up threatening the group's safety...

MERCURY BLACK

Setting: Offices of Arc Industries, Mercury's booth 

Time: Two weeks before Mercury was hired by Ozpin-Salem

_"You can't do this to me! You know who I am!? I was the one who made you! Without me, you're nothing!"_

_"I'm sorry, Mr. Black. I truly, truly am. But we have to let you go."_

Those words kept repeating in Mercury's mind as he cleaned out the rest of his desk. He still couldn't believe it; just a few years after working for Arc Industries, they were now firing him for his supposed "instability". But Mercury truly felt he was justified in his actions. He was certain that Adam Taurus stole his designs for a new, state-of-the-art Paladin that could rival ones made by the SDC and Ozpin-Salem. He was so certain of his work that he believed the Atlas Military would adopt it shortly after its public reveal.

So when he punched Adam after a board meeting, Mercury felt that the company did him wrong when they punished him instead. Adam's Paladin design ended up being approved by the board while he was being let go, thrown out after all of his years of service. 

_It's all that idiot Jaune Arc's doing,_ Mercury thought to himself as he chucked his favorite coffee mug into his moving box, _he's always had it out for me. Blonde bastard couldn't stand me from day one._

As Mercury continued with his clean-up, he heard a couple of knocks from behind him. He turned around and saw his fellow co-worker, Emerald Sustrai, standing there with a beer in both of her hands. She held out one of the beers to Mercury. Although she didn't say it out loud, the look on her face told Mercury that she felt sorry for him. "So, today's your last day, huh," Emerald said. Mercury nodded as he took the bottle from Emerald. "Gonna miss seeing you around here, Merc."

"Yeah, well...I'd say I would miss working here but, frankly, the sooner I get away from Jaune and Adam, the better," Mercury said, taking a swig of the beer right after. Emerald nodded her head, feeling sympathetic to what Mercury was going through. 

"So you're sure Adam stole your design?" Emerald asked as she took a seat by Mercury's desk.

Mercury snorted, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "Absolutely. He even mentioned the two-pilot system I suggested to Jaune a few weeks back. I knew I should've stayed quiet. This company's filled with rat bastards like Taurus, I should've known someone would be listening in on me. If I just kept my mouth shut, none of this would've happened."

"Well...anything you want me to do? I mean, I'm still your friend, I hate to see you like this."

At that, Mercury stopped what he was doing and turned to Emerald. Although he was happy to hear that she was willing to help him out, there wasn't much she could do at this point. Even if they somehow proved Adam stole Mercury's designs, it's not like Jaune would be thrilled to hire him back. Especially after Mercury showed he was not above hurting his fellow co-workers, even if he had no evidence supporting his claims. Even if he was right, Jaune would always see him as "unstable". 

"You don't have to do anything, Em," Mercury said with a sigh, "I'm already in the shit pile, no need to join me."

"Well, then...any plans? Has any other company reached out to you yet?"

"Not yet. SDC is a maybe. I also submitted my resume to Ozpin-Salem but...I don't know about them, it's hard to reach anyone from that company. Ozpin-Salem is more of a pipe dream at this point."

Emerald stared at Mercury. When he looked back at her, based on how she was staring at him, he wasn't certain what she was thinking of. She was deep in thought but Mercury couldn't guess as to why. 

Before he could ask, Emerald stood up and paced around his booth a bit. She had her thumb to her mouth, still thinking over whatever it was that was bothering her. Suddenly, her face lit up, as if the answer just came to her. She turned to Mercury with a big grin. "What would you say," she started, "If I told you that I can set up a meeting between you and the big lady herself."

"Who you talking about?" Mercury asked, genuinely confused.

"You said that Ozpin-Salem is a pipe dream. I say...it's not. Because, let's just say...I have a friend who has certain connections. And those connections lead to a certain someone by the name of...Salem."

 _Wait...what? No...she can't be-that's-that's insane!_ Mercury's jaw dropped and before he realized what he was doing, he kept closing and opening his mouth in shock, like a goldfish that realized food was being dropped in their bowl. "You can get me in a room with Salem?" Mercury asked.

Emerald nodded her head.

"As in...Salem-Salem. The head of Ozpin-Salem, that Salem?"

"There's no other person named Salem that I know of."

"Wow...just...what's in it for you? Why are you doing this for me, Em?"

"Can't a friend help out a friend in need? You said you got screwed over by Adam, I believe you, so I'm helping you get back on your feet. You can pay me back by saying yes, you'd like me to get you in contact with Salem."

Mercury chuckled. He had no idea what to say to all of this. Here he was, down on his luck and about to be jobless. But then, out of the blue, here comes Emerald saying that not only can she get him a new job, it's for the biggest company in all of Atlas. Possibly even all of Remnant. It seemed too good to be true but here Emerald was, saying this was not fantasy. He felt like giving her a kiss, but refrained from doing so. 

"Yeah," Mercury finally said, "Hell yeah, I'd love to work for Ozpin-Salem."

Emerald smiled at that. "Good. I'll talk to Cinder and see what I can do. Cinder's my friend who has the connections to Salem, by the way."

"She sounds like a lovely person." 

"She is. Now, give me a few days. I'll call you once I hear back from Cinder."

/

/

Setting: Jaune Arc's office

Time: A few hours later...

Mercury Black was long gone from Arc Industries at this point. Much to Emerald's displeasure, she was sitting in Jaune's office after being called by him. She had no idea why but she had a strong feeling that it had to do with her previous conversation with Mercury. Emerald watched as Jaune paced around his office, looking distressed. 

"Sustrai," Jaune said, his voice a bit tense, "A couple of your co-workers have reached out to me, telling me that you were talking to Mercury Black. You mind telling me why?"

"I was just saying my goodbyes to him," Emerald said. She wasn't necessarily wrong but Jaune could tell she was not telling him the whole truth. 

"I hope it wasn't anything too serious. You know why we let that man go, right?"

"Yeah. He punched Adam after accusing him of stealing his Paladin designs."

"Yes...but are you aware of the other incidents involving Mr. Black? I want to emphasize that his firing wasn't because of this one incident. He's developed a certain...reputation for bad behavior."

Emerald frowned. _Is this slander?_ Emerald thought to herself, _he's already fired, no need to drag his name any further._

"Mercury Black isn't a man to be trusted," Jaune continued, "That incident with Adam...I hate to say this but that wasn't the first time he's lashed out at one of my employees."

"Well...maybe Adam shouldn't have stolen his ideas-"

"-how sure are you that Adam was the thief? Now, I may not get along with Adam on a lot of issues, but I also don't think it's wise to just throw accusations at him, especially if you can't prove them. Because I can tell you right now, a lot of people in this company have told me that Mercury was the one trying to steal the idea. And that he lashed out at Adam when his plan didn't work."

Emerald didn't say anything to that. She didn't consider that, especially since Mercury was her friend. _Did Mercury lie to me? Was I wrong about this?_

* * *

Setting: Operations center

Time: A few minutes after Penny left to reconnect the settlement's uplink tower to the military airship...

Not much time had passed since Penny left when the peace was disturbed once again. Immediately, everyone in the base (aside from Cordovin, Mercury, and Blake) rushed over to the makeshift computer station to see what was going on. From what Summer could tell on the monitors, the two remaining sentry guns were opening fire in the tunnel. That could only mean one thing; another Grimm assault. 

"This is unbelievable," Qrow muttered to himself as he observed the shootout, "Twenty meters and closing. Fifteen-"

"-how many?" Summer interrupted. It was hard to tell from the sentry guns' camera feed, but it did look like at least a dozen Grimm were trying to force their way through. 

Qrow shook his head, filling Summer with anxiety. "Can't tell," he said, "Lots."

**'D' gun count: 243 rounds remaining**

Qrow cursed to himself when he saw how many rounds were left. "'D' gun's down 50%," he muttered. 

**'C' gun count: 280 rounds remaining**

"'C' gun's right behind it."

As the sentry guns continued their attack, based on the screeching the survivors heard that the Grimm were making, it didn't sound like the Grimm onslaught was going to stop anytime soon. Much to the group's dismay, the gunfire only seemed to emboldened the Grimm. They were determined to reach the tunnel doors, no matter how many they lost on their side. 

"It ain't stopping them," Cardin whined as he watched the round count dwindle, "It ain't stopping them!"

"150 rounds on 'D'!" Qrow shouted. Summer could feel sweat drop from her forehead upon hearing how close the gun was to running out of ammo.

"Come on!" Cardin shouted, pleading for the guns to stop the invasion, "Come on, baby! Come on!"

"Hundred rounds left!"

"Come on! Come on!"

"'D' gun's down to 20. Ten." Qrow's face dropped when he saw the turret finally run out of ammo. Immediately, he grabbed his pulse rifle, ready to face the Grimm horde one more time. "Goddamn it, everyone get ready-"

"-Wait!" Summer shouted, stopping Qrow in his tracks. Just as things seemed hopeless...the sounds of the Grimm horde trying to force their way through suddenly vanished. As a result, 'C' gun stopped firing. Dead silence permeated around the room, surprising the group since they were prepared for the worst. "They're retreating." Summer continued, "The guns stopped them". She couldn't believe what she was saying but there it was, the Grimm in full retreat. 

Qrow lowered his rifle when he saw that the threat was no longer present. He sighed in relief. "You're right," he said. Just to be sure, he checked how many rounds were left in 'C' gun. Although he wasn't thrilled to see that only ten rounds were left, he was grateful for the fact that the gun managed to stop the assault. 

But then, it dawned on Qrow just what that truly meant. Even though the guns succeeded now, there was no way in hell 'C' gun could stop another invasion. "Next time, they walk right up and knock," Qrow said glumly. 

Summer nodded her head, not disagreeing with what Qrow said but trying to find a positive spin for their situation. "Yeah, but they don't know that," she said, "They're probably looking for other ways to get in. That'll take them a while."

Cardin scoffed, his mood radically improved as if he wasn't just panicking for the last few minutes. "Maybe we got them demoralized," Cardin nervously joked.

Winter rolled her eyes at that. "Man, shut up," she said as she walked away from the computer monitors. 

With how precarious their situation was, Qrow turned to Winter and Cardin. He knew that the tunnel where C and D gun were stationed was vulnerable. Because of that, he wanted to get ahead of the game and make sure that all possible ways into the base were secured. "I want you two walking perimeter," Qrow said. He knew what he was ordering but, being the one in charge of the group, he had to make that order. 

Winter simply nodded her head, although Qrow could tell she was nervous about being so close to the tunnel doors. Cardin, unsurprisingly, shook his head. He didn't want to be anywhere near the doors, where he could easily be taken by one of the Grimm.

Qrow, though, wasn't having it. "Move it!" he shouted at both Winter and Cardin. Outranked, Winter began shoving Cardin out of the room. Before he had a chance to argue, Qrow shut him down with a glare. That was all Cardin needed to see. 

However, as soon as he saw Cardin's reaction to his glare, Qrow suddenly felt guilty. Seeing just how reluctant both Winter and Cardin looked when they heard the order to walk the perimeter, Qrow sighed and walked towards them. He had a feeling that the two of them were close to breaking down. Definitely Cardin but Qrow also felt that Winter was overstressed as well. She was just good at hiding it.

"Hey, listen," he said, in a calmer tone, "We're all in strung-out shape...but stay frosty...and alert. We can't afford to let one of those bastards in here." Qrow wasn't used to being the one giving out the pep talks, Ironwood was always the guy more suited for that. Still, he felt that he had to say something, especially given how stressful their situation was. 

Winter nodded her head at what Qrow said. Cardin, despite still being terrified, let out a small smile. It wasn't much but they did appreciate Qrow reaching out to the two of them. "All right," Winter said, "Let's go, Cardin." At that, both Winter and Cardin exited the room. 

As soon as they were out of sight, Qrow closed his eyes and pressed his fingers into his forehead. He hasn't been leader that long and he already felt burnt out by his responsibilities.

 _Oum...I need a break,_ Summer thought to herself as she took a sip of coffee. Between the Grimm attacking the tunnel entrances, the lack of sleep from having to be alert 24/7, and the tension inside the fortress, she felt like she could collapse from stress. Qrow noticed Summer's mood. Although Summer was trying to hide it, the fact that she was glued to her cup of coffee was a give-away that she was stressed about this whole situation. It didn't help that she also had the jitters and that she clearly had bags under her eyes. 

"How long's it been since you got any sleep?" Qrow asked Summer, "Twenty-four hours?"

Summer didn't respond at first. Although she heard his question, all she could think of was one thing; what would happen if the Grimm won and captured them all. She grimaced as she thought back to all the encounters she's had with the Grimm. From the first Grimm attack years ago that wiped out her crew to the loss of most of the Atlesian Marines. She especially thought back to what happened to Ironwood and Greenleaf. And to Taiyang Xiao Long as well. It was a terrible thought but being killed by the Grimm during a fight was a less horrifying fate than being taken alive and cocooned by one of their parasites.

"Branwen, I'm not gonna end up like those others," Summer said, darkly, "You'll take care of it, won't you?"

Qrow stared at Summer, realizing the gravity of what Summer was asking. _I'd rather die than be taken alive,_ that was what Summer was telegraphing to him. Qrow sighed, not liking the thought but knowing that they needed to have this conversation. "If it comes to that," he said, "Then I'll do us both."

 _Fair enough._ Summer nodded her head; she didn't like the idea of planning her death out ahead of time, but death was the only thing she could think of in this situation. The Grimm are dangerous, elusive, and intelligent, there was no telling what they were planning next. So for Summer, it made sense to plan for the worst, even if she didn't want to. 

"Listen, let's just make sure it doesn't come to that," Qrow said, trying to lighten the mood, "All right?"

Summer cracked a smile. "All right," she whispered. _Well...it's nice to know one of us is thinking optimistically._

As Summer smiled at Qrow, he turned his attention back to his pulse rifle. "Hey, I want to introduce you to a personal friend of mine," he said. He then raised the rifle, presenting its features to Summer. Summer watched closely, not sure where this was going but curious to see what Qrow had in mind. 

"This is an M-41A pulse rifle, 10 millimeter," he said as he pointed out the features of the rifle to Summer, "with an over-and-under 30 millimeter pump-action grenade launcher." Summer flinched for a second when Qrow, to demonstrate the grenade launcher, suddenly pumped the rifle. Qrow then pushed the weapon towards Summer, gesturing for her to grab it. "Feel the weight," he said. 

_Whoa...never fired one of these before. Only guns I've ever fired were my dad's hunting rifles and the sidearms that Atlas provided for self-defense._ Nervously, Summer took the pulse rifle from Qrow. She made sure her fingers were nowhere near the trigger, worried that she might accidentally let a round off. Although it wasn't heavy, Summer immediately noticed that there was some weight to it. The marines looked like they were having an easy time lugging all their weapons around. Now that she was actually holding one of their rifles, she was surprised that the marines were able to move like they did. _I'm guessing they're trained in being able to move around with their rifles. Eh, I just need some time to get used to carrying this around._

"Okay, what do I do?" Summer asked with a smile. Now that she knew that Qrow was trying to teach her how to fend for herself, she wanted to know everything about how to use a pulse rifle. 

Qrow smirked. He was clearly enjoying being able to play teacher.

* * *

Setting: Inside the pipeline

Despite how cramped the pipeline was, Penny pushed forward. Although she could only shimmy her way forward, she was not discouraged in her journey to the uplink tower. 

_Just stay focused, the people back there are counting on you._ It was a strange feeling for the android; although she wasn't human, she felt a strong connection to them regardless. She even felt a connection to Summer Rose, the woman who outright rejected her and hated her just for being an android. Penny wasn't sure how to describe this feeling, she just knew that she didn't want to see any of the humans die. 

_These monsters, the Grimm...they won't succeed. We'll all make it home. I'll make sure of that._

* * *

Back to Qrow and Summer...

"Okay, pull it in tight here."

"Right."

After a few minutes of weapons training, Summer felt like she was getting the hang of wielding the pulse rifle. As she aimed down the sights of the rifle, she imagined herself firing at a Grimm, watching its brains splatter all over the floor. It was a gruesome, imaginary sight...yet oddly satisfying. 

Qrow was standing closely behind Summer, guiding her through the demonstration. The fact that Qrow was just a few inches away from her wasn't lost on Summer; several times during this demonstration, Summer had to control her breathing. She both loved and hated that this demonstration was somehow getting her excited. Their close proximity wasn't lost on Qrow either; in fact, he was doing it on purpose. 

_I mean...he is cute...for an Atlesian military grunt. A bit rough around the edges but he seems like a genuine nice guy._

_She's pretty cute. Can't believe I thought she was just some crazy person, talking about monsters in the snow._

"Okay, lean into it," Qrow said, which Summer proceeded to do, "All right. Now, it will kick some. All right. When the counter reads zero here, you-"

"-I press this up?"

"That's right."

At that, Summer raised the rifle up and went through the motions of reloading the weapon. She ejected the "empty" magazine (it was still full since they were using Qrow's rifle) and reached for another mag to reload the rifle. 

"Get another one in quick," Qrow said, "Slap it in hard." 

**CLACK!** In one move, Summer placed the new mag into the rifle and slapped it in, just as Qrow instructed. The red counter on the rifle, which read off how many rounds were left in the magazine, suddenly went from 0 to 50. "Right, it's in," Summer said, happy that she at least knew the basics of handling the pulse rifle. 

Qrow nodded his head, pleased at their progress. "And you're ready to rock and roll." 

Pointing to where Qrow pumped the rifle from earlier, Summer asked, "What's this?" She had an idea what that feature was since Qrow hadn't gone over the grenade launcher yet, but she wanted to be sure. Plus, she didn't want to accidentally fire off a grenade during a battle. 

Qrow frowned. It looked like he wasn't expecting to cover this part of the weapon. "Uh...that's the grenade launcher. I don't think you want to mess with that."

Summer snorted, surprised at what he just told her. After going through a lengthy weapons demonstration, she was expecting to learn how to use all the features of the pulse rifle. She gently nudged him on the chest. "Hey, you started this," she teased, "Show me everything! I can handle myself."

Just to prove to Qrow she was being serious, she raised the rifle up again and aimed down the sights. She then pointed to where the grenade launcher was, insistent on learning how to use it. 

Qrow chuckled. "Yeah, I noticed," he said. 

* * *

One (slightly flirty) grenade launcher demonstration later...

Summer Rose exited the operations room and made her way back to the Medlab. Per Qrow's instructions, she still had the pulse rifle from their little weapons demonstration. He said that she needed to get used to the weight of the rifle while moving around, which she agreed with. Besides, Qrow also said that it made him feel less worried for her safety, knowing that she had the means to defend herself. 

As Summer made her way back to the Medlab (and to where Blake was sleeping), the doors to the labs opened...revealing a slightly-groggy Caroline Cordovin. The field dressing bandage that was wrapped around her head was stained with blood, especially around the area where she was knocked unconscious during the escape from the Grimm nest. Summer was surprised; she didn't expect Cordovin to wake from her coma, at least not before Penny brought the bullhead down from the airship. 

There was an awkward silence as Summer and Cordovin stared each other down. Even though they had more pressing concerns, Summer was still angry at how Cordovin mismanaged the whole situation. If she had been more competent, then maybe Ironwood, Greenleaf, Marigold, Ebi, Ederne, and Amin wouldn't be dead. Although Summer knew it was unfair to lay all the blame on Cordovin, part of her didn't care. 

Mercury Black, who was standing behind Cordovin, stood back and waited to see who would make the first movie. Summer was still angry with him as well but chose to stay silent, not wanting to get into another argument with the businessman. 

"How do you feel?" Summer asked, trying to keep things civil. 

Cordovin shrugged. "All right, I guess," she said, "One hell of a hangover. Look, Rose, I just want-"

"-Forget it. Excuse me."

Although Summer wanted to yell at Cordovin, she knew it would be a waste of time, thus she decided to just let it go. Summer moved her way inside the Medlab, side-stepping Cordovin, and walked away. 

With Summer gone, Mercury moved past Cordovin and walked towards the operations center to join Qrow. Now alone, Cordovin moved forward to join Qrow as well and catch up on everything she's missed since being knocked unconscious. 

Cordovin stopped in her tracks when she saw someone in her peripheral sights. She turned to her left...and froze in fear when she saw Winter Schnee staring her down. Just from the way that Winter was glaring at her, Cordovin knew that she was blaming her for what happened at the Grimm nest. And part of her agreed with Winter. 

* * *

Back to Summer...

Inside the Medlab, Summer quietly made her way to where Blake was sleeping. The room was still dark and, because she left the heater on, slightly warm. It was cozy enough that Summer even felt like removing her white hood. 

As Summer approached Blake's bed, she felt a slight panic when she saw that it was empty. That was when she noticed that Blake's lamp was underneath the bed. Summer crouched down and, after pulling the blanket up, saw that Blake was fast asleep.

 _Poor kid...she probably feels safer under the bed. That's what these monsters have done to her._ Summer couldn't blame the kid. It wasn't too long ago that she kept waking up in the middle of the night, drenched in sweat from horrifying Grimm nightmares. Everyone had their own way of dealing with their trauma and their fears. It seems for Blake, she no longer felt safe sleeping on her bed. 

Summer placed her rifle down on the top of Blake's bed. She then crawled underneath and laid down next to Blake. Although Blake was still asleep, she started moving around when she felt someone behind her. Summer, worried that she accidentally startled Blake, held her close to calm her. 

"It's okay," Summer whispered, "It's okay. It's just me." That seemed to do the trick as Blake stopped moving and went back to sleep, her breathing slowly calming down.

As Summer laid there, she started to feel drowsy. After being awake for so long, her body was starting to rebel against her. Although she wanted to stay awake, she also knew it would do her no good if she was too tired to fend for herself. _Just a few minutes...a few minutes of sleep won't hurt._

Summer leaned forward and kissed Blake on the back of her head. She then laid back and closed her eyes, letting the sleep take over. 

_Good night Blake...I'm hoping that we both have pleasant dreams for once..._

* * *

Setting: Uplink tower

The freezing Solitas tundra wind howled as Penny Polendina got to work at the base of the tower. As soon as she exited the pipeline, she sprung into action by going through the tower controls. After connecting her portable terminal to the uplink tower, Penny typed in a series of codes to change the antenna's position.

Despite the antenna being covered in ice, it managed to turn in the direction that Penny wanted it to. The ice easily shattered, making Penny cringe from how loud it was. _Please don't hear it, please don't hear it!_ Penny took a quick look around, making sure there were no Grimm in the area. Fortunately for her, there was still no Grimm in sight. 

With the antenna in place, Penny typed in another series of codes, this time for the Atlas military airship. It was still high up in the atmosphere, waiting for the crew's return. Because the antenna was realigned, Penny was able to make contact with the airship, giving her access to the airship's systems. 

Upon receiving Penny's codes, the airship's hangar bay lit up, a sign that it was being accessed remotely. One of the spare bullheads was moved into place, prepared for launch. Penny smiled; this was going smoothly. All she needed to do now was prep the bullhead and fly it in to the bio-dome to pick the survivors up.

 _Just a few more minutes...hang on everyone! We're almost home free!_

* * *

Back to Summer and Blake... 

_"Ruby, don't go too far honey! Remember, stay in sight for mommy."_

_"Okay!"_

_"Ruby! Ruby, what did I just say...wait, who are you?"_

_"It's me, your daughter Ruby!"_

_"No, you're not. Ruby's a teenager, you're too old to be-"_

_"-mom, I think you should wake up."_

_"What did you say?"_

_"Mom...WAKE UP-"_

Summer Rose woke with a jolt. For once, it wasn't a Grimm nightmare and yet, the dream still turned out horrible. If it wasn't cruel, soulless monsters inhabiting her dream-space, she was dreaming about her missing daughter. Summer sighed and checked her watch to see how much time had passed since she fell asleep. Although she overslept, Summer was still relieved that she had only been out of it for about two-and-a-half hours. But then, Summer remembered what Penny told her and realized that Penny should be just about done with her tasks by now. 

Looking away from her watch, she noticed something ahead of her. Despite the room being dark, Summer could feel her stomach drop when she saw the empty glass containers that were used to hold the Grimm parasites. Since one of the containers was still moving, Summer realized that the container must've been opened recently. 

_Oh no,_ Summer thought. Her heart started racing as she scanned the room, trying to find the Grimm parasites that were on the loose. _Penny...why didn't you just destroy them when I asked you to!? This is EXACTLY what I was worried about!_

"Shadow, wake up," Summer whispered. She shook the little cat faunus, immediately waking the girl.

Even though she had just woken up, Blake immediately felt that something was wrong. Then she saw the empty Grimm parasite containers and her mind immediately started to panic. "What-"

"-be quiet!" Summer interrupted, making sure to keep her voice as low as possible, "We're in trouble."

Blake nodded her head and covered her mouth, making sure she wouldn't accidentally give them away. Then, after mustering up the courage to do so, Summer scooted away from Blake...and raised her head up from the side of the bed. She could hear her heart beating fast as she left the bottom of the bed and exposed herself. 

Nothing. Absolutely nothing. The room was too quiet for her liking. She knew the parasites were around here, but she couldn't spot them. 

Then, all of a sudden...one of them reared its ugly head in. 

From her left side, the Grimm parasite suddenly launched itself from a nearby cabinet. Summer managed to duck in time and, by moving the bed, managed to pin the Grimm parasite to the wall. The creature snarled and hissed as it tried to free itself and grab a hold of either Summer or Blake's faces. 

"No!" Summer shouted at the parasite. There was no way in hell she was going out like Taiyang, Ironwood, and Greenleaf. No chance in hell. Turning to Blake, she shouted, "Move, Shadow!" 

Blake didn't need that order repeated as she scrambled out and moved away from the bed. Summer followed Blake and, to prevent the parasite from chasing them, flipped the bed over in order to trap it. Summer and Blake then made their way to the Medlab exit, hoping to get away from the parasite-

 **WOOOSH!** Summer watched as the Grimm parasite scurried away from the bed, back into the shadows. It was only a matter of time before the creature would try again. 

Now that they were at the exit, Summer realized that the doors didn't open when she and Blake approached it. Confused, she started to pry them open, only to realize they were shut tight. Even with Blake helping her, the two couldn't get either door to budge. 

_What the hell is going on,_ Summer thought, _who shut off the power? Are we in a blackout?_ Summer took Blake's hand and moved to the main windows. Much to her dismay, none of the others were on the other side of the glass. It looked like they were all in the operations center. Summer and Blake then began banging on the windows, hoping that someone would hear.

"Hey!" Summer shouted as she continued pounding away at the window, "Hey, we're in here!"

"Help! Help!" Blake cried out. 

Unfortunately, Summer didn't know this but the windows were soundproof. To Summer and Blake, they were making enough noise to attract everyone in the base, at least from their side of the glass. But outside, the only sounds anyone would pick up were the faint thuds of the window being struck by Summer and Blake. 

Summer then stopped calling out for help when she noticed something on a table on the other side of the window; her pulse rifle. She had a lot of questions about what was going on but seeing her rifle gave her an answer to at least one of her questions; this was not an accident. And she had a gut feeling about who did it. 

_That slimy...two-faced...piece of trash! No, Summer, focus on getting out of here first. You can tear him apart after this._

Realizing that nobody was hearing their calls for help, Summer switched to plan B. Remembering that she told Blake about the security camera in the room, she moved to the middle of the room and faced the camera directly. She then held her arms out, hoping to catch someone's attention. 

"Branwen! Somebody! We're in the Medlab and the door is closed! Help us!"

* * *

Setting: Operations center

"Say again, Penny. You've got it into auto-refuel mode, and it's sequencing, right?

"That's right!"

"Okay, good. Stay on it. Get back to me when you've activated the launch cycle."

"Roger!"

As Qrow Branwen and Penny Polendina were having their discussion about the bullhead being brought down from the airship, no one seemed to notice Summer Rose desperately calling for help on one of the security monitors.

Except for one person. Unfortunately for Summer, that person happened to be Mercury Black. Without hesitation, he reached over and shut the Medlab camera off. It was a dirty move, but Mercury was at peace with his decision. He then walked away from the monitor, hoping that by the time he got back to the Medlab, the parasites would have done their job. 

"She's at the uplink tower," Qrow said, catching Mercury's attention. 

"That's good," Cordovin said. Caroline, who was helping Qrow with managing the team, sighed in relief at the fact that Penny essentially saved everyone. Now they just had to wait for the bullhead to arrive. 

"Terrific," Mercury said. He couldn't help but smile; not only was his plan working, he was going home soon. _Salem's gonna enjoy this. Can't wait to see her face...when she sees that I managed to bring her live Grimm specimens._

* * *

Back to Summer and Blake...

"BRANWEN! BRANWEN! BRANWEN!"

"HELP US! HELP!" 

"BRANWEN, PLEASE, HELP US!"

Nothing. It didn't take long for Summer to realize that had Qrow been watching his computer monitors, he and the others would've been rushing in by now, guns blazing. Best case scenario, he was away from his station. Worst case scenario...the camera feed to the Medlab had somehow been cut off. 

Realizing this was going nowhere, Blake started looking around for anything sharp that could break the windows. "Miss Rose!" she shouted at Summer, "Break the glass! Break it, break it!"

Summer stopped yelling at the camera and turned to Blake. Although it was a longshot plan due to the windows being military-grade (ironically, what was supposed to be a major highlight of Ozpin-Salem's settlements was now a problem), Summer decided she had nothing else to lose. 

"Yes," Summer said as she scrambled around the room to find something heavy that she could swing at the window, "I'll try, I'll try." From her search, she decided on a steel chair that was right by the fallen over parasite containers. _Here goes nothing,_ Summer thought as she lifted the chair and took a swing at the window.

**KLUNK! KLUNK! KLUNK! KLUNK!**

Although she was making some dents in the glass, it was not enough to shatter the window completely. Summer grunted, frustrated at how strong the glass was. At this rate, she was going to tire herself out before making any real progress. As she leaned back to take another swing, she heard something move behind her. On reflex, she dropped the chair, terrified that one of the parasites were going to come out of nowhere and attack her. She then pressed her back against the window and began scanning the room for the creature. 

Nothing. Even though she clearly heard it moving around, the parasite had gone back into hiding. _It's toying with us,_ she thought, _it knows that we're scared. It's taking it's time now, savoring the moment._

Blake joined Summer, pressing her back against the window as well. She looked like she was about to cry from the stress of the situation. "Miss Rose, I'm scared," Blake whimpered. 

Summer wished she could reassure her. She was the adult here and every instinct in her body wanted to tell Blake that everything would be alright. However, she couldn't bring herself to lie, not when she was just as terrified as Blake. "Me too," Summer whispered. 

With the doors and windows not a valid option, Summer closed her eyes and began thinking of other ways to escape. _We can try the vents-no, that's too dangerous and might take us into Grimm territory. Plus, we run the risk of letting those parasites into the rest of the base. We could try fighting them-no, my rifle is outside and I don't want to risk Blake's safety. Come on Summer, you can do this! Think! Maybe...I can...fuck, maybe I can try getting Branwen's attention again. But what can I do-_

Summer's eyes lit up when she suddenly realized there was another way to get the others' attention. Looking above, she began to smile when she saw the sprinklers that were in place in case a fire broke out. 

"Stay here," Summer whispered to Blake as she leaped into action. She reached into her pocket and pulled out her lighter. Then, she reached up to one of the sprinklers and flipped the wheel on her lighter, igniting a small flame. Summer then let the flame heat up the sprinkler, hoping to set it off. _Come on...come on...please, for fuck's sake, just go off already-_

**BWISH!**

Summer retreated as the sprinklers went off, showering her with icy cold water. She retreated back to Blake, keeping her close to her. _Okay Branwen, there's no way you won't notice that._

* * *

Back to Qrow...

Qrow nearly had a heart attack when he heard the alarms go off. Checking his computer station, he breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that it wasn't a Grimm assault. However, that's when he quickly realized they had a different problem. 

"It's the Medlab," he shouted as he made his way to that area, "Winchester! Schnee, meet me in Medlab. We got a fire!"

"We're on our way!" Cardin shouted over his comms. 

Caroline Cordovin joined Qrow on the way to Medlab. Before they went any further, Qrow grabbed a nearby fire extinguisher. They then continued towards the Medlab, both of them hoping that the fire didn't cause too much damage.

* * *

Back to Summer and Blake...

"They're coming, Shadow," Summer whispered to Blake. As the alarms kept blaring and the room kept being filled with water, Summer could only think about the Grimm parasites that were inside the room. She hoped that they had been scared off by either the alarms or the water but deep down, she knew that they were probably just waiting for the right moment to strike-

**SHVACH!**

Blake screamed as a Grimm parasite launched itself from a nearby medical machine. Summer landed on the ground with a hard thud, her hands firmly grasped on the parasite's slimy body. _No! Not this way! I'm not going out like this!_ Blake backed away just as Summer pried the parasite away from her face. With all her might, Summer chucked the parasite across the room, where it made contact with the wall. Despite that, the parasite got back up again as if nothing had just happened. 

Summer desperately started crawling backwards as the Grimm parasite creeped its way towards her. It was moving quickly, eager to claim her as its victim. Nothing seemed to be stopping the parasite, even as Summer began knocking over medical equipment to block its path.

Summer felt her stomach drop when she realized she had backed up into a wall. With nowhere to go, she held her arms up knowing that the parasite would make another attempt to reach her face. Sure enough, the parasite launched itself again and ended up getting caught in her arms. Before Summer could throw it again, the Grimm parasite's scaly, tar-like tail wrapped itself around her neck. Panic started setting in when she felt the parasite's grip tighten; if it couldn't do its job, then it was willing to strangle the life out of her. 

As Summer struggled with the parasite, Blake couldn't help but scream. Fear was overwhelming her senses and she felt like shutting down on the spot. That was when she felt something move by her side. She turned and saw the second Grimm parasite, slowly lifting its ugly head up behind a table. Immediately, Blake shoved the table into the parasite. The parasite, which tried to launch itself, ended up getting trapped between the table and the wall. Even though Blake was scared out of her mind, she was not about to let go of the table and give the parasite another chance to attack her.

Unfortunately for Blake, because the sprinklers were going off, the water was making it easier for the parasite to slip loose. And it was slowly wiggling itself free. 

The marines arrived just a few seconds after the sprinklers went off. All four of them couldn't believe what they were seeing; Summer was being strangled by a Grimm parasite while Blake was keeping another parasite in place with a table. What disturbed them even more was when they saw cracks in one of the windows; it didn't take much to realize that those cracks came from Summer and Blake trying to break the glass. 

"SHOOT IT OUT!" Qrow shouted at Winchester. Cardin didn't waste any time as he raised his rifle and opened fire at the cracked-up window. With the glass weakened, Qrow leaped shoulder-first into the window, shattering it completely. Winter, Cardin, and Cordovin then all quickly climbed through the broken window to aid Summer and Blake. Cardin went for Blake while Qrow, Winter, and Cordovin made their way to Summer. 

Blake turned to Cardin, her arms getting tired from keeping the Grimm parasite in place. "WINCHESTER!" she shouted, her grip still on the table. 

"Holy Brothers, kid, look out!" Cardin shouted. He gently pushed Blake out of the way, then, just like what she was doing earlier, placed his boot on the end of the table to keep the Grimm parasite from coming loose. "Fucking die, you motherfucker!" 

**BA-RA-KA-KA-KA-KA-KA-KA-KA!**

The Grimm parasite screeched in agony when the bullets from Cardin's rifle ripped it to shreds. Just to be sure the creature was destroyed, Cardin fired a few more rounds off, turning what was left of the parasite into mush. Blake sighed in relief as she stared at the destroyed parasite's remains. 

On Summer's side of the room, Qrow, Winter, and Caroline were struggling to unwrap the parasite's tail from Summer's neck. As they did, Summer felt like she was close to passing out, that this was where she was going to die. 

As if to seal that point, Summer began seeing her life flash before her eyes. She saw Ruby waking up on Christmas morning. She saw Zwei at the pet store, minutes before she decided to adopt him. She saw Raven Branwen talking to Taiyang Xiao Long about their mission to LV-426. And then she saw Blake, staring at her as if she was her only remaining family in this world. 

_Come on Summer...not like this...just a few more seconds...trust in Branwen...Schnee...Cordovin-_

Summer suddenly felt the pressure around her neck be released. As she caught her breath, she saw Qrow and Caroline move away from her. They had the Grimm parasite in their hands, holding it in place while making sure it was as far from their faces as possible. Behind her, Summer saw that Winter Schnee had her rifle up, aimed to a specific part of the room. 

"Over there!" Qrow shouted as he gestured to a specific spot in the room to Winter, "Ready?!"

"Yeah, yeah!" Winter shouted, her finger already over the trigger. 

"Cordovin, on 3! 1...2...3, now!" With all their might, Qrow and Caroline threw the Grimm parasite to their designated spot. As soon as the parasite hit the floor, Winter lit it up with several rounds from her rifle. The parasite squirmed for a few seconds, but then stopped moving, dead. 

With the threat gone, Qrow turned to Summer and gently pulled her into his arms. Although she was grateful for the marines, at the moment, Summer was solely focused on regaining her breath. Because of how tight the parasite's grip was, she feared that her throat may have been crushed.

"Winchester?!" Qrow yelled to the other side of the room.

Cardin ran over as soon as he heard his name. "Yeah, we're all clear," he said, a little out of breath, "Nailed the other one. It's history, man."

Qrow nodded his head, glad that it was all over. "Holy shit," he muttered to himself, "What happened-"

"Mer-Mer-Mercury," Summer said, her voice a bit raspy, "It was Mercury."

Qrow stared at her, shocked at what he was hearing. Although Summer couldn't prove it...her gut was telling her that he was responsible. 

_This is the man who sent the Belladonnas to the Grimm cave without telling them what the danger was. This is the man responsible for everything that's happened. I know he did this, the fucker._

* * *

A few minutes later... 

After the group shut the fire system off, Cardin and Winter hauled in Mercury Black to the Medlab on Qrow's orders. Qrow was pacing around the room, still in disbelief over this whole situation. He never liked Mercury and he always had his suspicions of the man, especially since Mercury had connections to the higher-ups in Ozpin-Salem. However, attempting to murder two people in their group just didn't sit right with him. He couldn't understand why he would do that, especially since they needed everyone working together in order to survive the Grimm invaders. Trying to kill Summer and Blake for no reason felt like...suicide. 

Cardin didn't understand Mercury's motivations either, but unlike Qrow, he didn't care why he did it. Attempted murder was good enough for him to punish the silver-haired businessman. "I say we grease this rat-fuck, son of a bitch right now!" Cardin said as he shoved his rifle into Mercury's face.

Despite a weapon being aimed directly at his head, Mercury just sighed and rolled his eyes. It didn't look like he was taking any of this seriously. 

Qrow shook his head. "Just doesn't make any goddamn sense," Qrow muttered. He turned to Summer Rose, hoping she had an answer.

With all eyes on her, Summer thought back to her last conversation with Mercury. About how he was worried about not being able to get one of the Grimm through Atlas' quarantine measures. How there was no feasible way to move the Grimm out of the Solitas tundra. How he wanted to make a profit over bringing these creatures back to Ozpin-Salem. Thinking back to how the Grimm functioned as a species, it suddenly occurred to Summer that there was indeed a way to sneak one of them back into Atlas. A method that made her skin crawl.

 _This...inhuman...soulless...piece of garbage!_ "He figured that he could get a Grimm back through quarantine if one of us was impregnated...or whatever you call it, " Summer said, "and then frozen for the trip home". She stared down Mercury, gauging his reactions to what she was saying. So far, Mercury's face didn't budge. It was as if he was ready for this confrontation. 

"Nobody would know about the embryos we were carrying...me and Shadow," Summer continued. Blake, upon hearing what Summer said, glared at Mercury. She hated the businessman with a passion. 

"Wait a minute, now," Qrow said, still processing what Summer was saying, "We'd all know."

Summer nodded her head at that. Although what Qrow said was true, she already knew how Mercury would get around it. "Yes. The only way he could do it is if he sabotaged certain freezers on the way home. Namely yours. Then he could jettison the bodies and make up any story he liked." It sickened Summer to have to say that, that she managed to work out Mercury's insidious plan. As for the marines, the looks of disgust on their faces told the story. 

Cordovin looked away, ashamed that she decided to take on this mission and work alongside Mercury. Winter Schnee tightened her grip on her rifle, desperately wanting to tear Mercury's face off for what he was planning on doing. Qrow Branwen glared at Mercury, disturbed that he planned to kill everyone in the group in order to sneak a Grimm into Mantle. And then there was Cardin, who looked back at Mercury with hatred in his eyes. 

"Fuck!" he shouted as he moved into Mercury's personal space, "He's dead! You're dog meat, pal!"

With Summer, Blake, and all four marines glaring at him, Mercury sat up in his seat. He looked unnerved, feeling that he was unfairly being put on trial. "This is so nuts," he snapped at the group, "I mean, listen...listen to what you're saying. It's paranoid delusion! It's really sad! It's pathetic!"

"You know, Mercury," Summer said, "I don't know which species is worse. You don't see them fucking each other over for a goddamn percentage."

Suddenly, Qrow walked over to Mercury and grabbed him by his shirt. "All right," he said, "I heard enough, we waste him. No offense!"

Panic filled Mercury as he was pulled out of his seat by Qrow. Winter and Cardin got their rifles ready while Cordovin watched, okay with letting them execute the businessman. However, Summer felt that this was the wrong move.

She wanted to kill Mercury. He tried to kill her and almost got Blake killed as well. He was the one who started all of this and got most of the settlers in Hadley's Hope killed. He was the one who dragged her back to the Solitas tundra by lying to her that they were here to exterminate the Grimm. But all that being said...not only did she want to see him ruined, she wanted him to stand trial. She wanted him to tell Ozpin-Salem and the rest of Atlas about what happened here.

Summer wanted Mercury to face the consequences of his actions...even if it meant keeping him alive, despite everything he's done. 

"No!" Summer yelled, "He's gotta go back-"

**FWOOOM!**

The group froze when suddenly, the lights in the bio-dome went out. They were shrouded in darkness for a few seconds. Then, a faint red light filled the room. Summer recognized it as the bio-dome's emergency lights.

 _Wait a minute...the emergency lights would only be activated if...oh my god._ "They cut the power," Summer muttered, horrified at what she just said. She couldn't believe it; the Grimm somehow managed to cut the power to the area. Not only that...they knew they had to do it in order to attack the survivors. 

Cardin immediately started panicking. "What do you mean, they cut the power?!" he shouted at Summer, "How could they cut the power, man?! They're animals-"

"-I want you two with trackers, checking the corridors," Qrow interrupted, "Move!"

Winter and Cardin immediately took off down the corridor, towards the perimeter of the base. Qrow followed closely behind, but focused on reaching the operations center in order to check the computer station. 

As Summer ran to join Qrow, she briefly turned back to Caroline. "Cordovin, watch Mercury!" Summer shouted.

Cordovin nodded her head. She took out a pistol, pulled the hammer back, and aimed it right behind Mercury's head. "Don't worry, I got him," she said. 

With Mercury at gunpoint, Summer turned back to follow Qrow. "Shadow, stay close!" Summer shouted as she ran. Following Summer's orders, Blake ran off to join her. She managed to grab a flashlight from a nearby table and used it to light the path in front of her. Although the red emergency lights were on, it was still difficult to see due to how dim the light was. 

* * *

Setting: Operations center

Qrow, Summer, and Blake made their way to the main operations center. Cordovin and Mercury followed closely behind, Cordovin's pistol still aimed at the back of Mercury's head. Meanwhile, Cardin and Winter made their way to the perimeter of the base, which was the corridor outside the operations center. The two marines began moving around the hallway cautiously, aware that the Grimm could be anywhere. Both of them were carrying motion trackers and were focused on picking up anything moving that was not in their group. 

"I'll go this side," Cardin said as he began moving down to the left.

"You do that, man," Winter replied, moving down to the right. 

The two moved down their respective corridors slowly. Their steps were so soft that the only sounds they could hear were the soft pings from their motion trackers. 

So far, nothing. Although it was great that the trackers weren't picking up any foreign movement, both Winter and Cardin kept their guards up, knowing full well just how elusive the Grimm were. Back in the Grimm nest, even though their motion trackers picked up on the Grimm's movements, they couldn't find them anyways. Because of that, they lost six people in one fell swoop.

Even though there was no movement, Cardin and Winter were no longer taking any chances. They didn't take the Grimm seriously before and paid the price for it.

Back inside the operations center, Summer picked up a radio headset that was linked directly to the marines' comms. "Is there anything out there?" Summer said into her headset, hoping that either Winter or Cardin would respond. 

As soon as Summer called out to the two marines... **BOOP. BOOP. BOOP. BOOP. BOOP.**

Cardin's stomach dropped when he saw multiple blips on his motion tracker show up, representing unknown beings. "There's something," Cardin said into his comms, "It's inside the complex."

"You're just reading me," Winter said down the hall. Although Winter said that, she felt that she was wrong. Atlas Military would always stress that the motion trackers weren't supposed to pick up on anyone in their unit. However, she wanted to be right about this. Because she didn't want to consider that all the blips she was seeing on her tracker were the Grimm advancing on their location. 

"No, no, it ain't you!" Cardin shouted back. His stomach dropped even further when more and more blips started showing on his screen. He was starting to have eerie flashbacks to the Grimm nest ambush, just seeing how many were appearing. "They're not supposed to pick up on anyone in the group! I'm telling you, they're inside...inside the perimeter! They're in here!"

"Winchester, stay cool," Summer said over the comms, "Schnee?"

As Winter's motion tracker screen became filled with dozens of blips for unknown beings, she gulped, realizing that there was only one explanation for this. "Winchester...may be right," she muttered, knowing that the Grimm invasion was imminent. 

That was all Qrow and Summer needed to hear. "Get back, both of you!" Summer said. Following Qrow's lead, she quickly checked the ammo count on her pulse rifle. _50 rounds...okay Rose, let's make this count._

Back in the corridor, Cardin couldn't believe what he was seeing. There were unknown blips everywhere and they just seemed to keep growing. It felt like the whole nest was moving in on their spot. "The signal's weird," he said over the comms, "Must be some interference or something. There's movement all over the place!"

"Get back to Operations!" Qrow shouted over his comms. He heard enough. This was it, the moment they were waiting for. Although they knew the Grimm were inevitably going to make a final push into their base, he still felt uneasy at the thought of fighting these creatures again. Especially with how disastrous his last encounter was. Turning to Summer, Qrow gave her a nod, signaling to her that this was it. "It's game time," he said, his tone dark and blunt. 

Summer nodded at that. The two made their way to the doors leading into the base's perimeter. Just as Winter and Cardin were making their way back inside, Qrow ran forward to make sure nothing was following them inside. Winter Schnee passed her motion tracker along to Summer, who took it off her hands. Although Summer already knew what was going to be on the screen, it still dismayed her to see just how many Grimm were nearby. _Holy Brothers, they sent an army to kill us,_ Summer thought to herself, _no, not an army. They sent the whole fucking hive_. 

"Seal the door," Summer said, "Hurry!" Qrow nodded his head, knowing what he had to do. 

"Come on, come on," Qrow muttered to Winter and Cardin, "Come on! Get back! Alright, Winter, let's work fast." Cardin Winchester made his way to Summer and Blake while Qrow and Winter stayed at the main doors. They then took out blowtorches from their belts and began using them to weld the doors shut. The operations center was filled with blinding white light as Qrow and Winter worked quickly in sealing the doors, hoping that this would be enough to at least slow the Grimm's assault. 

Turning to Blake briefly, Summer saw that the little girl was wincing from how blinding the light was. "Cover your eyes, Shadow," Summer said, "Don't look at the light." Blake did so, turning away from the door. 

As the two marines continued working on sealing the door, Cardin and Summer looked back at their motion trackers to follow the Grimm's movements. So far, not much has changed since the trackers first picked the Grimm up. "Movement," Cardin said, "Signal's clean. Range, 20 meters."

"They found a way in," Summer whispered, "something we missed." _Alright Summer...think...you've seen the plans for the biodome, what could the Grimm have used to get through to us?_

"We didn't miss anything!" Qrow shouted, not taking his eyes off the main doors. He was almost done welding the doors shut. Still, based on how close the Grimm were to their position, Summer wished he and Winter would pick up the pace. 

"Eighteen," Cardin muttered, still tracking, "Seventeen meters-"

"-Something under the floor, not in the plans," Summer interrupted, "I don't know!" She looked down at her motion tracker, amazed at just how many blips were on the screen. Something wasn't adding up here. After all the extensive precautions the group had taken in making sure the Grimm wouldn't be able to reach their base, it seemed impossible to Summer that so many had managed to find a way inside. 

"Fifteen meters!" Cardin shouted, his tone starting to sound shaky.

Blake reached for Summer and began tugging on her arm, desperately wanting to leave. "Rose!" she said. She didn't want to say it out loud but this situation felt too familiar. This was how the last of the settlers fell to the Grimm. Blake didn't want to go through that again. 

"Definitely inside the barricades!" Qrow shouted.

"Let's go!" Blake cried out, trying her best to tug Summer away from the group. 

Summer turned to Blake. Before she could tell her to relax and that she and the adults were going to handle this situation, Cardin uttered something that made her feel like she was about to have a panic attack. "Thirteen meters!"

"Oh my god," Summer muttered, "That's right outside the door! Branwen, Schnee, get back!"

"Holy fuck, man, this is a big fucking signal!" Cardin shouted, horrified by what he was seeing. 

Despite what Cardin and Summer were saying, Qrow wanted to be sure that the Grimm couldn't just burst through the doors with ease. Although he was frustrated that he still wasn't finished welding the doors, he was not about to leave his task unfinished. "How you doing, Schnee, talk to me!" Qrow shouted, trying to maintain his composure. 

"I'm almost there," Winter muttered, still focused on the task at hand. 

The seconds felt like hours as Qrow and Winter made their way towards each other with their blowtorches. It was nerve-racking, imagining the Grimm being right on the other side of the doors. However, both marines pressed on. 

It took just a few more seconds for both marines to finish their work. "That's it!" Winter shouted as soon as she finished. Moving quickly, both Qrow and Winter holstered their blowtorches and switched to their pulse rifles. They then made their way back to the group, practically running away from the main door, and raised their rifles up, ready for the last stand. 

With the welding finished, the group collectively moved backwards, trying to get away from the main doors as much as possible. They were essentially a few feet away from the corridor leading back into the Medlab. Cordovin and Mercury were the closest to the Medlab entrances while Summer, Winter, Qrow, and Cardin formed a defensive line, their rifles all aimed towards the main doors. Any Grimm that was breaking through them would face their wrath. Despite being scared, Blake chose to stay by Summer's side instead of joining Cordovin and Mercury in the back of the room. 

"Twelve meters!" Cardin shouted, still tracking the Grimm's movements, "Eleven...ten-"

"-Shit, then they're right on us!" Winter shouted. 

"Nine meters!"

"Remember...short, controlled bursts," Qrow instructed the group. Summer nodded her head. Despite being taught how to use the pulse rifle a few hours ago, this would be the first time she fired one. She gulped nervously, hoping that she had some beginner's luck when it came to using the rifle. 

"Eight meters! Seven...six!"

At that, Summer turned to Cardin. _Wait...6 meters? But isn't that-_

"That can't be, that's inside the room!" Summer snapped at Cardin as she kept her rifle aimed towards the blast doors. In response, Cardin hastily turned to her to show that his scanner was still working.

"It's reading right, man, look!" he shouted. Summer couldn't deny that the dots representing the Grimm were indeed 6 meters away. 

"Well you're not reading it right!" Qrow snapped back. However, he sounded unsure of himself when he did. Everyone in the room had no idea what to expect, especially with how elusive the Grimm had been. 

"Five meters man! Four...man, what the hell?!"

Frustrated, Summer looked to her own scanner. Just like what Cardin said, the Grimm were basically inside the room with them. _But that's impossible! What did we miss? We covered the basement, the hallways, we've double-checked each possible corridor. There has to be something else, something we-_

Summer's stomach sank when she realized what it was. As she looked up towards the ceiling, everyone understood what she was thinking. 

_They found a way through the ceiling vents._

"Oh, my God," Cardin panicked, "Oh fuck! Oh shit-"

"-Give me the light!" Qrow shouted. Qrow hopped up to a nearby desk that was underneath one of the vents. Cardin, who was shaking out of fear, handed him his flashlight. With the whole group watching him, Qrow used his rifle to gently lift up the vent. He then stuck his head inside the vent and began looking around for the Grimm.

Qrow tried to steady his breath but found that he couldn't do it. All he could hear at the moment was his own nervous breathing and the sounds of Cardin and Summer's motion trackers still reading the Grimm's movements. Unlike the operations center, the vents were completely dark, forcing Qrow to rely on his flashlight lighting the area. 

_Where are you bastards,_ Qrow thought as he moved his flashlight around the dark vent, _come on out, you fucking pieces of-_

Qrow stopped dead in his tracks when he found what he was looking for. All huddled together, the massive Grimm horde snarled at Qrow, ready to tear him apart. 

Out of sheer panic, Qrow lost his footing as he tried to make his way back down to the group. As he fell down, he opened fire with his rifle. The shots peppered the ceiling, catching the Grimm off-guard. Blake screamed as the loud gunshots rang throughout the room.

**CRASH! BLAM! SVASH!**

Like raindrops falling from a cloud, the Grimm began falling through the ceiling. They roared at the survivors, ready to capture them and bring them back to the nest. 

Cardin immediately started blasting away, not taking any chances. "THERE THEY GO! OVER THERE! GET THEM!"

Winter and Qrow weren't too far behind. Still feeling angry from their previous defeat at the Grimm nest, Cardin, Winter, and Qrow fired away at the incoming monsters, desperately wanting to punish them. The Grimm shrieked and howled as the three marines began taking the monsters down, one-by-one.

"Do something, Cordovin!" Mercury shouted, terrified at the Grimm advancing on their position. Despite being only armed with a pistol, Cordovin began firing away at the Grimm. 

Now no longer at gunpoint, Mercury Black snuck his way away from the group and back to the Medlab area. 

As the four marines held their ground, more and more Grimm began falling from the ceilings. At the rate they were filling the room, it wouldn't be long until they overran the group. (Cardin: "Get them! Look out! There's more of them! There's more of them!)

Summer, realizing the danger, grabbed Blake by the hand and started making her way to the Medlab. "Medical!" she shouted at the marines, "Get to Medical! Do it! Now!"

Much to Summer's dismay, the gunfire was too loud for anyone to hear her. "Winchester, look out!" Qrow shouted as he fired at a Grimm that had gotten too close to Cardin, "Look out!"

Before Summer could yell at Qrow to order the others to retreat, a Grimm spotted her and Blake and started making its way towards them. Summer stopped in her tracks and raised her rifle. Her grip was shaky as fear and nervousness started to take hold. _Come on Summer, blast it away. Remember what Branwen said, keep it close, maintain a firm grip, and expect the rifle to have a kick. Now just aim and-_

**BA-RA-KA-KA-KA-KA-KA-KA-KA!**

The Grimm's chest exploded as Summer opened fire on it. Black tar blood hit the ground around it, causing part of the floor to dissolve. 

Summer breathed a sigh of relief. "Now!" Summer shouted, once again urging the marines to retreat. Taking Blake's hand once again, Summer and Blake made their way to the Medlab entrance. Suddenly, they saw Mercury standing by the door. Summer cursed, realizing that because Cordovin was helping the others fight the Grimm horde, no one was watching over Mercury. 

"Mercury!" Summer shouted at the man, hoping he wouldn't do anything insane. She cursed again when Mercury shut the door on her face. He then locked it from his side, essentially trapping everyone in the operations center. "Open this door!" Summer shouted, "MERCURY! OPEN IT!"

No response. Instead, Mercury decided to fall back and let the Grimm have their way with the survivors. 

With the Grimm horde not slowing down anytime soon, Qrow realized that they needed to pull back before they were completely overrun. "Go!" he shouted at the others. "Fall back! Go!" As he retreated to the Medlab, he kept firing at the Grimm, providing enough cover fire for the others to fall back. Winter and Cordovin understood what he was doing and began pulling back. As for Cardin, despite being terrified earlier, he was now in a full-on adrenaline rush. In an unwise move, he actually began pushing forward, eager to make the Grimm bastards pay for what they had done. 

"DIE, MOTHERFUCKERS!" Cardin shouted as he confronted the beasts, "DIE MOTHERFUCKERS! FUCK ALL OF YOU!"

As Cardin blasted away, Summer and Blake attempted to open the Medlab doors. Cordovin soon joined them, not wanting to be in the area any longer.

"What's wrong, Rose?!" Cordovin shouted as she reloaded her pistol.

"Mercury shut the door from the other side!" Summer answered, "I can't get it to open!"

"Fuck! Mercury!"

"We need the blowtorches! Damn it, Branwen, Schnee! Get over here, now!"

Despite hearing Summer calling for his name, Qrow was too busy trying to get Winter and Cardin to retreat. Winter was by his side, but Cardin was fully focused on the Grimm. It was to the point that Qrow wasn't sure if Cardin could even hear them. 

"Winchester!" Qrow shouted, "Winchester, let's go!"

"MOTHERFUCKERS!" Cardin yelled out, guns still blazing, "COME ON! COME ON! COME AND GET IT, BABY! COME ON! I DON'T GOT ALL DAY! COME ON! COME ON! COME ON, YOU BASTARDS! COME ON! YOU TOO! YOU WANT SOME OF THIS? FUCK ALL OF YOU-"

**CLANG!**

Qrow could only watch in horror as a vent underneath Cardin suddenly popped open, catching the marine by surprise. Not only did the Grimm find a way into the ceiling vents, they managed to find a way through the floors. Cardin tried firing at the Grimm that was right underneath him but it was too late. The Grimm managed to grab ahold of his chest and began pulling him in.

"Fuck you!" Cardin shouted, "Damn it, Branwen! Branwen, help!"

"Winchester!"

Both Qrow and Winter reached forward, trying to pull Cardin back from the Grimm's grip. But it was too late; the last thing Qrow and Winter heard were Cardin's blood-curling screams as the Grimm ran back down the floor vent, with him still in its clutches. 

With Cardin gone, Qrow moved away from the vent and fired several shots, hitting a Grimm that had gotten too close for comfort. The Grimm had broken through their defensive line and were advancing fast. "Come on, let's go!" Winter yelled, pushing the corporal forward. Although he was still upset over losing Cardin to those monsters, Qrow moved forward and ran towards the Medlab door. There, he saw Summer, Blake, and Cordovin all struggling trying to get the door to open. 

"It's locked!" Summer shouted. 

"Fucking Mercury Black!" Cordovin added. Skipping over any questions he had about what happened while he was trying to save Cardin, Qrow reached for his blowtorch and immediately began working on the door locks. 

As Qrow melted the locks to the door, Winter Schnee became the sole member of the group still battling the Grimm. Just like Qrow, she was upset over losing Cardin. She knew that she needed to fall back but for now, she was going to make the Grimm wish they hadn't broken into their base.

**CLICK!**

Winter cursed when she realized she had run out of ammo. She quickly checked her belt, then swore when she realized she had one magazine left. _Fuck this,_ she thought, _let's see how you bastards deal with this!_

 **SHU-SHICK!** Winter pumped the grenade launcher and, aiming it right at the center of the Grimm infestation, fired off a single grenade. **BOOM!** Winter turned away as the grenade exploded, blowing apart any Grimm and equipment was in the blast area. 

**SHU-SHICK! BOOM!** Winter pumped the launcher again and fired a second shot, causing even more destruction. The operations center was now on fire from the two grenade blasts. Despite that, the grenades did their job as the Grimm had been temporarily pushed back. Winter then moved away from her spot and joined the remaining survivors by the Medlab doors. 

By the time Winter rejoined, Qrow managed to melt the last of the door locks. Cordovin and Qrow immediately opened the doors, allowing everyone inside. "Got it!" Qrow shouted, "Let's go! Let's go! (Cordovin: "Go, go!")

"Move, Cordovin!" Winter shouted as she ran by Caroline. Being the last one through, Cordovin closed the door behind Winter.

"Seal it!" Qrow shouted. Winter nodded her head and began to work by switching back to her blowtorch and using it to weld the doors shut. She moved quickly, knowing that the Grimm on the other side were just a few feet away. 

This set of doors put the group back in the corridor leading into the Medlab. Summer ran off to the door leading directly into the Medlab...then cursed when she realized this door was also closed from the other side. "MERCURY!" she screamed, "GODDAMN YOU, OPEN THIS DOOR! OPEN IT!"

"I'm gonna fucking kill that rat piece of shit, I swear!" Qrow shouted. 

/

/

On the other side of the door, Mercury Black nervously walked away from the doors. He didn't know what was more terrifying, the Grimm monstrosities that were coming to kill them all or his own group who were ready to blast him away as soon as they made their way into the Medlab. At least with the Grimm, they were willing to keep you alive.

_Okay Mercury...just stay calm. Things make look bad now but you can survive this. You're a survivor. This is nothing! This is nothing. This is-_

Mercury gulped when he heard the doors behind him open. He turned around slowly...and came face-to-face with a Grimm. 

_Well...shit._

The Grimm snarled as it opened its mouth. Mercury could only scream as he saw the monster's tongue, which turned out to be a claw. The next thing he knew, he was being dragged by the Grimm, right into the vent it had used to enter the Medlab. 

/

/

"Get back!" Qrow shouted, "Cordovin, get out of the way." Summer, Cordovin, and Blake moved away as Qrow pulled out his blowtorch once again, this time to melt the door locks for the Medlab. 

**THOMP!**

Winter was caught off-guard when the door leading back into the operations center suddenly became dented. It looked like the Grimm were trying to brute force their way into their location. When the initial shock wore off, Winter went back to welding the doors shut. "Hurry up, hurry up!" Winter shouted at Qrow. 

Suddenly, Summer felt something tug at her arm. She turned around and saw that Blake was trying to pull her towards one of the vents in the corridor. It looked like one of the vents that Blake had used to escape from Summer and the marines earlier. "Rose, this way!" Blake yelled.

"What?" Summer asked. Blake didn't answer as she pried the vent's gate off. Looking inside, the passage was narrow but it looked like there was enough to space to crawl through. For Blake, she was small enough to be able to run inside without needing to crouch. _Good thinking, kid! Well done!_ "Wait! Shadow, get behind me!" 

"Whatever you're gonna do, do it fast," Winter shouted, still not done with welding the door shut.

Using her flashlight, Summer shined the light down the vent. Much to her relief, there was no Grimm inside. Although the danger of encountering one of those things was high, Summer was willing to take the risk, especially since the Grimm were quickly swarming the area. 

"Branwen, here!" Summer shouted. Summer then moved inside the vent, Blake not too far behind. 

Seeing Summer and Blake crawl into the vent, Qrow stopped trying to break into the Medlab and followed them inside. "Vents, now!" Qrow shouted, "Cordovin, Schnee!"

"Come on, let's go!" Cordovin replied back, "Move!" Qrow crawled in, then Cordovin. Winter, however, decided to hang back in order to make sure the door to the operations center was welded shut. As soon as she finished, she stood back, rifle aimed right at the door. The door shook as the Grimm kept on pounding away at it, desperate to break through. 

/

/

Inside the vent, after walking down a long, straight passage, the passage split into two separate directions. Summer stopped, unsure where to go from here. "Which way is it to the landing field from here?" Summer asked Blake. 

Blake pointed to their right. "It's this way!" 

Trusting in the child's directions, Summer turned to the right and moved forward.

/

/

Despite welding the door shut, the Grimm were close to getting through just on sheer brute force. The center of the door was caved in at this point, a result of the Grimm's relentless battering of it. 

_Damn it,_ Winter thought, _all that work for nothing._

With the Grimm coming through anyways, she quickly reloaded her rifle and began blasting away at the incoming Grimm. She then crouched down and made her way into the vent to rejoin the others. 

/

/

"Go right! This way! This way!"

"Which way?"

"Straight ahead and left!"

Summer couldn't help but feel proud of this little girl. Without her, they would've been stuck in the Medlab, ultimately overrun by the Grimm invaders. There was no way they could've navigated the vents, not without the help of someone who actually lived in Hadley's Hope and knew the ventilation systems.

As Summer and Blake led the way, the marines behind them struggled to keep up. Winter Schnee, the furthest behind, continued to blast away at the Grimm that was following them inside the vent. Meanwhile, Qrow and Cordovin were not too far from Summer and Blake, but were concerned by how far Winter was from them. They wanted to stop to let her catch up, but they also didn't want to lose track of Summer and Blake. 

After hearing from Summer that Blake was leading them to the landing field, Qrow reached for his comms to contact Penny Polendina. "Penny, do you read me?! Come in! Over!"

* * *

Setting: Uplink tower

Despite the icy weather affecting their radio transmissions, Penny was able to pick up on Qrow's voice. She felt immediately worried when she sensed an urgency in his tone. However, Penny put those thoughts aside, knowing that it wouldn't do her any good to consider what might have happened to the others back in the bio-dome. She had to assume everyone was still okay in order to function properly. 

"The bullhead is on its way," Penny answered, "ETA, 16 minutes!"

* * *

Back to the others...

Qrow felt a sense of relief, knowing that they had a ride out of this place as soon as they reached Penny. "Good, stand by there! We're on our way!"

/

/

Winter panted as she kept moving down the vents. Although she knew she could move faster if she turned around and moved forward, she didn't want to turn her back to the Grimm. Thus, she kept moving backwards, despite this slowing her down. 

Suddenly, a Grimm shot forward trying to reach her. Winter stopped it in its track with a volley of gunfire. 

/

/

Summer and Blake stopped again. This time, the path split three ways; ahead, left and right. Summer cursed, hating that this was so complicated. "Which way now?"

"That way!" Blake shouted, pointing to the left.

Summer turned to the left. Suddenly, Blake tugged her back. Now, she was pointing down the right side. "No, wait," she said, "This way!"

"You sure?!"

Blake didn't answer. And now, Summer started to feel uneasy. Although she trusted Blake, she was also hoping that Blake didn't accidentally get them lost in the vents.

/

/ 

"SCHNEE, LET'S MOVE! MOVE!"

Cordovin and Qrow stopped, their worry for Winter overtaking them. 

Winter, hearing Cordovin call out her name, tried to move faster. She continued to blast away at the Grimm horde, fully knowing that she was on her last mag. 

/

/

"Right up here! It's just up here!" Blake pointed ahead, smiling for once. She was completely confident that this was where they needed to be. 

Summer didn't doubt her, but now her attention was to the marines who were lagging behind. "Branwen!" Summer shouted, "Branwen, where are you!?"

"We're almost there!" Blake shouted, moving ahead. 

"Shadow, wait! Shadow!" 

Although Summer wanted to wait for the marines, she started moving again since she didn't want to lose track of Blake. She hoped that the marines at least weren't too far off. 

/

/

Now almost caught up with Qrow and Cordovin, Winter stopped at a three-way passage split and fired at a Grimm that was coming at her from down the vent. She managed to kill it just as her rifle ran out of ammo. She cursed, then dropped the weapon and switched to her pistol. 

Winter moved down the right tunnel since she heard Cordovin's voice come down from that side. Things seemed to be going fine-

**SCREECH!**

Winter looked up. From the vent right above her, a Grimm descended down trying to ambush her. 

**BLAM! BLAM! BLAM! BLAM! BLAM!**

Unlike her rifle, the pistol didn't seem to do much damage to the Grimm. The Grimm landed on top of her and, just like with Cardin, tried to take ahold of her. 

_Not this time, you piece of garbage!_ Winter, with all of her might, drove her boot into the Grimm's head, slamming it into the vent walls. _Eat this!_ Putting her pistol right into the Grimm's head, Winter emptied the mag. The Grimm's head fell apart from the bullets cutting it down. 

Although the Grimm was put down, Winter began to scream when the blood from the Grimm's now-destroyed head hit her legs. The acid began eating away at her, making her scream out in agony. As she reloaded her gun, Winter realized in horror that she was in too much pain to move forward. There was no way she could reach the others on her own, not in this state. 

"Oh...fuck!" she yelled out, "Oh, no! Please!" 

Up ahead, Cordovin and Qrow stopped in their tracks when they heard Winter cry out. "Schnee!" Qrow shouted. No response.

Just as Qrow was going to turn back, Cordovin stopped him. "Go, I got her!" Caroline shouted. Reluctantly, Qrow nodded his head and moved forward. Although he wanted to go back and get Winter, he also had to make sure Summer and Blake were safe. 

With Qrow moving forward, Cordovin crawled back into the vents and made her way to Winter. By this point, Winter was close to passing out from the acid eating away at her legs. Cordovin grabbed ahold of Winter by her armpits and began dragging her down the vent, hoping to rejoin Qrow and the others-

**CLANG!**

Cordovin cursed when a vent in front of her burst open, cutting off their path. A Grimm then stuck its ugly head through, its attention on both Cordovin and Winter.

With no way around the Grimm, Cordovin did the only thing she could do at that moment; open fire at the Grimm with her handgun. 

/

/

At the end of the passage, Summer, Blake, and Qrow came across another vent cover. Blake quickly shoved the vent cover off, leading the trio into another area. Although Summer and Qrow had no idea what this area would be used for, Summer assumed it had something to do with power since there was a turbine-like wheel right below them. "Shadow, where to now?"

"Up there! There's a shortcut across the roof!" Blake pointed to a ladder on the other side of the wheel. Although the ladder wasn't far from them, Summer gulped when she realized they would have to step on the moving wheel in order to reach it. 

"Branwen," Summer said, "Help me keep it steady."

"Got it," Qrow answered. The three then got to work. Summer slung her rifle on her shoulders, then put her foot down on the wheel to keep it from moving. Then, with Qrow's help, the two helped Blake walk over the wheel and to the ladder.

/

/

**BANG! BANG! CLICK! CLICK!**

Cordovin sighed and threw her pistol, completely out of ammo. Despite emptying a mag on the Grimm blocking their path, the monster was still breathing and making its way to them. Looking down the other side of the passage, Cordovin saw that more Grimm were converging on her spot. 

"You always were an asshole, Cordovin," Winter muttered weakly. She chuckled, realizing those would be her last words. 

With nowhere else to go, Cordovin reached into her belt and pulled out a grenade. Winter, realizing what Cordovin was doing, reached forward and grabbed ahold of the grenade as well. Cordovin then pressed down on it, triggering the grenade. 

The two held onto the grenade, terrified of just the thought of them releasing the hammer and going up in flames. Winter wondered if death by grenade was actually quick but even then, the thought of dying this way made her feel sick.

But then she saw the Grimm, snarling and making their way towards them with the purpose of bringing them back to the nest and using their bodies to make even more Grimm. And just like that...both Winter and Cordovin realized there were worse ways to die.

The Grimm leaped forward, ready to capture Winter and Cordovin-

**BOOM!**

/

/

Just as Summer and Blake were making their way up the ladder, there was a sudden blast from inside the vents, causing the area to shake. This caused Blake to lose her balance and she ended up landing on the wheel. She screamed as the wheel began to rotate downwards, moving Blake away from Summer and Qrow. 

"SHADOW, NO!" Summer screamed. She climbed down from the ladder and reached for Blake, who was slowly disappearing into another vent.

"ROSE!" Blake screamed, trying to hold on to the edge of the vent for dear life. 

"Shadow! Branwen! Branwen, get her! Hurry!"

Moving fast, Qrow used his rifle to stop the wheel from turning. He then reached down, hoping he could grab Blake. Summer did the same. Unfortunately, Blake was out of their reach. 

"Hold on, Shadow!"

"I'm slipping!"

"Don't let go!"

"Rose! Help!"

"Hold on!" It took a few tries but eventually, Summer was able to get ahold of the cuff of Blake's jacket. "I gotcha! I gotcha!"

And that's when it happened. While trying to tug Blake in, Blake's jacket came loose, causing her to slide down the vent. The vent, which was more of a chute, turned to the right at the bottom. Blake screamed as she slid down, eventually leaving both Summer and Qrow's sights.

"Shadow! No!" 

Qrow leaned back, frustrated that they had lost the kid. Before he could dwell on it, he suddenly remembered from earlier that Blake was wearing the wristwatch locator that he had given to Summer. He was going to bring this up before, but now, he was glad that Summer decided to give it to Blake. "Come on, we can find her with this!" Qrow said to Summer. He raised the tracker he had shown to Summer earlier, the one specifically meant for the locator. 

Summer sighed in relief. It wasn't much, but she was going to take it. "Stay where you are, Shadow!" Summer said down the chute.

"Rose!" Blake cried out. Her voice echoed, from wherever she was. 

"We're coming!"

* * *

Setting: Sewer systems, lower levels of the bio-dome 

It turns out, the wheel that Summer thought was a turbine was actually meant for waste disposal. After falling into the chute, Blake Belladonna ended up in what appeared to be a sewer. The water was waist deep, forcing her to move slowly. Thankfully, the water seemed to be clean, despite it being sewage water. Still, the quality of the water wasn't her concern at the moment; as she looked around, she kept an eye out for any Grimm that somehow managed to make their way into this area.

"Rose!" Blake cried out. She knew that making noise was risky, but she couldn't help but cry out for help. 

/

/

Following Qrow's lead, Summer and Qrow ended up back in the main lobby of the bio-dome. Honing in on Blake's position, the two made their way down a series of stairs, leading all the way to the bottom floor in the lower levels. Luckily for them, the area was free of Grimm...for now. They knew it was a matter of time before the Grimm realized there were three more humans running loose around the lower levels. 

"This way," Qrow shouted, keeping his eye on his tracker, "She's close!" Taking a quick peek at Qrow's tracker, Summer saw that they really were closing in on Blake's position since the number representing the distance between them was descending. 

"Shadow!" Summer called out. The two picked up the pace, not wanting to stay in this area any longer. 

/

/

"Rose!" Blake called out again. As she looked around, she swore she could've heard footsteps above her. 

/

/

"Where are you?" Summer called out, "Can you hear me? Shadow!"

Summer and Qrow started to feel worried. They were definitely in the area that the signal from Blake's wristwatch was coming from, and yet Blake was nowhere to be found. 

/

/

Blake looked up, realizing that she did hear footsteps. As soon as she heard her name called, she realized that it was Summer and Qrow coming to her rescue. She quickly made her way to a series of pipes and climbed on top of them in order to reach the metal grates above her head. It turned out, the metal grates that made up her ceiling was actually the floor that Summer and Qrow were running on. 

"Here! I'm here!" Blake called out. 

/

/

"Where?!"

Summer got her answer when she saw a pair of fingers come up from the metal grate just a few feet away from her. Relieved, Summer and Qrow quickly ran over to her. Qrow shined a light down and there she was, drenched in sewer water. She looked battered and tired, but at least she was alive. 

"Shadow, are you okay?" Summer asked. Blake nodded her head. 

Moving quickly, Qrow attempted to lift the grate up. After giving it a few tugs, he stopped, realizing that the grates were bolted down. "We'll have to cut it," he said as he took out his blowtorch. 

Summer nodded her head. Although it would be a tedious task and that they needed to move quickly before the Grimm caught up to them, they had no choice but to cut through. "Climb down, honey," Summer said, "We've gotta cut through."

Blake nodded her head again and climbed down. She looked away as sparks began flying out from Qrow melting through the metal grate. "Shadow?" Summer said, trying her best not to alarm the kid, "Now, don't move. Stay very still."

"Okay." Blake said. She nervously hugged her Ilia Amitola doll close to her chest, wanting to be out of this sewer as soon as possible. 

"We're almost there. Hang in there, okay?" It seemed like they were finally getting a break. Despite all the noise Qrow was making, no Grimm had shown up. But before Summer could finally relax...

**BOOP-BOOP-BOOP-BOOP-BOOP-BOOP-BOOP-BOOP**

Summer cursed when she saw her motion tracker start to pick up movement. Looking at the screen, she saw that the Grimm horde was quickly advancing on their position. Despite killing several of the Grimm, it didn't look like they actually dwindled their numbers; the horde was just as large as before the battle in the operations center. 

"Branwen," Summer whispered. 

"I know," Qrow snapped, not wanting to panic despite the coming threat. 

"Hurry!"

"I know!"

"I mean it!"

Blake and Summer looked around their respective area, trying to see where the Grimm was coming from. Despite the tracker reading off several blips, neither woman was able to spot one. Just like before, they were being elusive. It was like they were toying with them before they revealed themselves. 

Summer looked back at her tracker. The distance between them and the Grimm was narrowing quickly. Fifteen meters...fourteen...thirteen...twelve...eleven...ten...nine...eight-

That was too close for comfort. Summer grabbed her rifle and looked down to Blake. "Shadow? Shadow, just stay still!"

"I'm almost there!" Qrow shouted, his tone dark and urgent, "I'm almost-"

Summer and Qrow's stomachs dropped when they heard Blake suddenly scream out in fear. While Qrow was busy cutting through the metal grate and Summer scanning the area for Grimm, a Grimm had managed to sneak up behind Blake. Even though Qrow didn't finish cutting the grate, both he and Summer began kicking away at the metal, forcing it open. 

_Please no, please no, please no, please no!_ Summer shined a light down into the sewer, hoping to find Blake there. Instead, all she saw was Blake's Ilia Amitola doll as it slowly sank into the water. The Grimm that had taken her was long gone. 

Suddenly, Summer felt sick. It was happening all over again; she was back in the hospital in Mantle, hearing the news that Ruby Rose had disappeared while she was in hibernation. Blake wasn't her biological daughter but losing her felt like she lost another. 

"NO!" Summer cried out, "SHADOW! No! No! No, no, no-"

"-Let's go!" Qrow yelled, trying to pull Summer away. Summer resisted, not wanting to accept that Blake was gone. 

"No! No! They don't kill you! They-they don't kill you. They-she's alive! She's alive-"

"-All right! I believe you! She's alive. But we've got to go. Now!"

Despite the horror of the situation, hearing Qrow's words managed to snap Summer back into reality. Although Blake was gone, it was more than likely that the Grimm was taking her back to the nest where they had taken all the other settlers. It was a slim chance but Blake could still be rescued.

Summer got up. Qrow then took her by the hand and started moving towards a nearby elevator that was down the hall. Qrow pressed the button on the elevator, opening it, and both he and Summer ran inside. Qrow then pressed the button for the surface level. 

Nothing. Frustrated that the elevator was taking too long to move up, Qrow pressed the button for the surface level once again. This time, the elevator door closed-

**SVASH!**

Summer cried out in shock when a pair of Grimm claws appeared out of nowhere, preventing the doors from closing. On reflex, Qrow opened fire with his rifle, immediately killing the Grimm. However, because the Grimm was so close to them, some of its blood hit Qrow right on the chest. The sounds of acid eating away through metal filled the air, followed by Qrow gasping for air.

"Branwen!" Summer yelled. She sprung into action, trying to unlatch Qrow's Atlesian armor off of his body. 

Qrow grunted in pain, struggling with his own gear. Although the armor wasn't hard to remove, panic was making the task difficult "Get it off!" he screamed out in pain, "Get it off!"

Smoke filled the elevator from the acid dissolving the armor, causing both Summer and Qrow to cough. Fortunately, Summer managed to unlatch Qrow's armor before the acid could reach his chest. However, the damage was done. Qrow could barely stand now. With him injured, Summer wrapped his right arm behind her neck and lifted him up. Although they were going to be slow, Summer was not about to let Qrow move on his own, especially when he couldn't at the moment.

The elevators opened and both Summer and Qrow were suddenly hit with a blast of cold air. The elevator had taken them back outside, into the icy Solitas tundra. Judging from where they were, the elevator was actually right by the blast doors when the group first arrived in Hadley's Hope. 

"Here!" Summer cried out as she dragged Qrow along the snow, "Let's go! Come on, you can make it!"

From here, Summer and Qrow made the journey towards the uplink tower in order to regroup with Penny. Although they knew they could be attacked by Grimm at any moment, they had no other choice but to make the long walk. 

* * *

Back to Penny at the uplink tower...

Penny Polendina, using her portable terminal, managed to guide the bullhead down right in front of her. The bullhead landed with a soft thud, not the best landing (according to the late Harriet Bree's standards) but passable enough. Just as Penny lowered the bullhead's ramp, Summer Rose and Qrow Branwen arrived. 

Although Penny didn't say anything, she was highly concerned when she noticed that Summer was dragging Qrow along and that Qrow had burn marks on his chest. It was as if he was hit by a corrosive substance. 

"Penny, how much time?' Summer yelled out over the icy wind. 

"Plenty," Penny responded, "Twenty-six minutes."

"We're not leaving!"

"We're not?!"

Without getting an answer, Summer dragged Qrow inside the bullhead. Penny followed closely behind, unsure what was going on in the white-hooded woman's head. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Based on: Aliens (1986)
> 
> Just a reminder, if you haven't done so already, go over to the "POLL 1" chapter and vote for your favorite of the movie selections! Whichever gets the most votes will be the next full-length, movie-to-RWBY adaptation, right after I finish work on "Grimms".
> 
> AN1: Even though I've seen this scene countless times, writing it out with the RWBY cast made me feel like I was watching it all over again. Hopefully I did the second battle scene justice! 
> 
> AN2: I was originally going to do the last thirty minutes as a two-parter but screw it, let's finish the movie. There's not much story left anyways. "GRIMMS" FINALE IS NEXT!


	27. Grimms (Part 7: FINALE)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's the final showdown between Summer Rose and the Grimm as she makes her way back to their nest in order to rescue Blake Belladonna...

Setting: Bullhead, on the way to the processing station (the Grimm's nest) 

There was a feeling of apprehension in the air as Penny Polendina flew the bullhead towards the processing station. They were going back to where the mission started going downhill, back to the lion's den. Although everyone on the bullhead was aware of the dangers of this place, Summer Rose pushed her fears aside in order to focus on the task at hand. Blake Belladonna needed to be rescued and if it meant storming the Grimm's nest one more time, then so be it. 

With Qrow Branwen out of commission due to being doused with acid blood on the chest (and some even hitting his face) and Penny not being programmed for combat, Summer was going in alone. So, as Penny flew into the rapidly deteriorating station, Summer started gearing up for her journey into the nest. First off, she grabbed a M41A pulse rifle from the bullhead's arsenal, along with several extra magazines. Then, she grabbed a flamethrower. With the help of duct tape and velcro wrapping, she managed to connect the two weapons together, which allowed her to carry both at the same time. 

Qrow, who was busy injecting himself with medication for the acid, watched her closely. He looked impressed at her level of ingenuity.

As Penny flew further into the station, she could already see signs of instability that would lead into the inevitable meltdown and destruction of the settlement. Large flashes of electricity were being shot out of the generators, small fires were erupting from the vents, and the base was being filled with smoke. It was indeed a terrifying sight, as if she was flying right into the gates of hell. Penny soon landed with ease on a balcony that led straight to two sets of elevators. So far, no Grimm.

With the bullhead landed, Summer finished up her preparations for her solo mission. She slapped in a full magazine into her rifle (the red counter on the rifle changed from 0 to 95), taped the tracker for Blake's wristwatch on top of the rifle, wrapped a grenade belt around her waist, and pocketed several flares. The gear was heavy but at the moment, that was not a concern for Summer. She needed all of this gear in order to stand a chance against the Grimm.

Penny arrived shortly after Summer pocketed her flares. "Rose," Penny said, her tone sounding concerned, "I must ask if this is-"

"-I don't wanna hear about it, Penny," Summer snapped, already knowing what Penny was thinking. Although this was essentially a suicide mission and that she was endangering everyone in the bullhead by not just leaving the area, Summer was also not about to leave Blake to die a horrible death at the hands of the Grimm. Neither was Qrow, although he didn't say it out loud. "She's alive. There's still time."

"Rose, in 19 minutes, this area is gonna be a cloud of vapor the size of Kuroyuri-"

"-Branwen, don't let her leave!"

Qrow nodded his head. "We ain't going anywhere," he said, glaring at Penny. 

Summer slung her rifle-flamethrower hybrid weapon and made her way to the landing ramp. Before she exited the bullhead, she turned back to Qrow. It pained her to see him so...weak. After all his efforts in keeping the group together and being the strong leader they needed at the time, it was a shame that he had been reduced down to this state. _Thank you for everything, Branwen,_ Summer thought to herself, _I_ _hope this won't be the last time we see each other._ "See you, Branwen," Summer said.

Qrow turned to her. He was now covering one of his eyes, indicating that the acid that hit his face was still stinging. Despite that, he was smiling through the pain, as if it was just a minor bruise. Before Summer could ask him why he was smiling, Qrow said, "Enough with calling me Branwen. Qrow. It's Qrow."

 _Qrow...that's a nice name._ "Summer," Summer said.

"Don't be gone long, Summer," Qrow said. Despite being in pain, he still managed to give her a wink with his open eye. Even though she was focused on rescuing Blake, Summer couldn't help but blush at that. She gave him a soft smile, happy that they've gotten this far. _First name basis...I like it. Maybe after this, we can get dinner or something._

Summer snapped back to her task at hand and ran down the landing ramp. She made her way to the two elevators, which Penny said would take her straight down to the Grimm's nest. Summer clicked the button for one of the elevators and, as soon as the doors opened, she went inside and clicked the button for the bottom level. 

Summer then got to work, making some last minute preparations before storming the nest. She loaded the grenade launcher, then removed her white hood in order to move around more freely. As she did, she couldn't help but focus on the alarms blaring in the area. There was an automated voice repeating the same emergency message:

**Attention. Emergency. All personnel must evacuate immediately. You now have 15 minutes to reach minimum safe distance.**

**Attention. Emergency. All personnel must evacuate immediately. You now have 14 minutes to reach minimum safe distance.**

And so on. Summer shut her eyes and took a deep breath to calm herself. _Yes, this place is about to be vaporized but there's nothing you can do about it,_ Summer thought, _just focus on rescuing Blake. You're not here to stop the explosion, you're here to save the kid._ Summer then opened her eyes. Although she was still a big ball of nerves, right now, she was feeling something that she hadn't felt before; determination. She was still scared of facing the monsters and angry that the monsters have ruined so many lives. Now, she was focused on rescuing an innocent child and leaving this nightmare once and for all. 

Summer activated the flamethrower. With all her weapons ready...it was showtime. The elevator reached the bottom and the doors opened. There was no turning back, she was deep inside the Grimm nest. 

So far, no Grimm. Either they were still all at the bio-dome or were just lurking around the processing station, waiting for their chance to strike. As Summer stepped out, she suddenly realized that the noise coming from Blake's tracker was a bit loud. Or at least, that's how it felt since all Summer could hear was the tracker's beeping. _Hopefully, it's just me and the Grimm aren't picking up on any of these sounds._

Summer moved forward, making sure she checked her corners as she did. Because she was so on edge, nearly everything in the area made her flinch. Smoke coming out of a pipe nearly made her jump back and she thought that a Grimm had snuck up behind her, only to realize that it was just snow falling from the elevator. Summer fired a few streams of fire from her flamethrower. Although it was unnecessary, she did it partly to light the dark corridors up since it was hard to see in the area. One pipe caught on fire from one of Summer's flamethrower blasts. Fearing it would blow, Summer quickly made her way past the burning pipe. 

**WHIIIIIRRRR!**

Summer quickly took cover behind a set of pipes, unsure where that noise was coming from. It didn't sound like a Grimm but she didn't want to take her chances. When she stuck her head out to see what caused the noise, she sighed in relief when she saw that it was just the elevator doors closing. _Damn it Summer, at this rate, you'll never find Blake if everything in the area makes you shit your pants._ Suddenly, remembering her Blake tracker, Summer turned to it to see just how far Blake was from her. _49.4 meters...not too far._

Summer moved from her hiding spot and made her way to a set of stairs, which led her even further down into the station. She grimaced when she saw a sign that read "sub-level 3". She wasn't too far away from where the six marines were killed in the first ambush. Pushing that thought aside, Summer went down the stairs to the level right below hers. Still following her tracker, she then made her way down towards a narrow tunnel. Due to the inside of the tunnel being dark, Summer shot out another stream of fire to light the way and hurt any Grimm that may have been hiding in the dark. Once again, nothing. 

_No Grimm just yet...where the hell are they?_ Summer pushed that thought aside as well. She was hoping to not run into the Grimm, although she knew that the chances of that were slim. Now that she was a considerable distance away from the elevator, Summer activated a flare and dropped it to the ground. That way, she could keep track of how far into the station she was. 

Further and further into the station Summer went. Every few feet she moved forward, she blasted a stream of fire in front of her to light the path and possibly burn any Grimm that was waiting to ambush her. Still, nothing. She may as well have been alone in the station with how far the Grimm was letting her walk inside. 

Although this would usually be a good sign for Summer, not running into any Grimm was filling her up with anxiety. She wasn't sure if the Grimm was just not in this area or if they were playing 3D chess with her, waiting to strike when she least expected it. The more she thought about these hypothetical scenarios, the more she felt her body start to shut down from panic. It got to the point where Summer had to stop for a second to slow her heart rate down. The last thing she needed was to have a full-blown panic attack when Blake needed rescue.

_Focus Summer...steady your heart, catch your breath, and move forward. Right now, you're your own worst enemy. The Grimm hasn't even struck yet and you're already losing to them. Don't let fear stop you._

As Summer forced herself to calm down, she thought back to all those sleepless nights after being woken up from hibernation. All those nightmares of the Grimm terrorizing her and her friends, waking her up in the middle of the night. Right now, she felt like she was having another one of those Grimm nightmares, except this one was real.

Summer looked to her tracker again. This time, the range was only 22.8 meters. She was getting really close to Blake. Looking down, Summer realized that she would have to descend further down into the station. Before going down the steps, she quickly blasted out another stream of fire. Once again, no Grimm on the receiving end. 

Just like the floor above her, this floor was just as empty. Even after firing out a few more streams from her flamethrower, no Grimm rushed into the scene to attack her. Summer quickly took out another flare and dropped it. She then moved forward, making sure she checked her corners every chance she got. Even if the Grimm decided not to attack, she was not about to let her guard down and give them an easy kill.

As Summer moved through a billow of steam and smoke that was coming out of a set of nearby pipes, the tracker started beeping louder than usual. Summer looked down...and despaired when she saw that she was at 0.0 meters. She was basically standing on top of Blake. 

_Blake...where are you?! You're supposed to be right here, but-_

That's when Summer noticed it. Crouching down, she reached over and grabbed the wristwatch tracker, which was covered in some sort of Grimm residue. Summer started weeping, realizing that Blake had somehow lost the tracker after being taken by the Grimm. This was the only lead she had on Blake's location. And now, with no other way of tracking the little girl...she was gone for good. 

_No...I'm sorry kid...I wasn't good enough...I'm sorry...I'm sorry...I'm sorry..._

* * *

_Ew...what is this stuff? Where am I? Miss Rose, are you there? What's going on-_

Blake Belladonna opened her eyes, her head dizzy and her body aching from being kidnapped by the Grimm. As she regained her senses, she realized that she was trapped in some sort of...residue. Whatever it was, it had hardened at this point, gluing Blake down to her spot. No matter how hard Blake tried, she couldn't free herself from this disgusting substance.

Before Blake could cry out for help, she noticed something in front of her. It resembled an egg and it was also covered in the same slimy substance that she was encased in. The egg looked familiar to her; she could've sworn that she saw these eggs back in the bio-dome, being hauled in by security officer Vernal and examined by the settlement's lead doctors, the Malachite twins.

The egg suddenly opened up, like a Venus flytrap opening up to welcome potential prey. The egg had a fleshy-like consistency, as if it were a slab of meat. Blake then looked inside the egg...and despaired when she saw the Grimm parasite. It emerged from the slime, like a newborn baby being born. 

Since she couldn't free herself, Blake did the one thing she could do at the moment; scream and hope that someone would hear her. 

* * *

Summer snapped back to her senses when, all of a sudden, she heard loud screaming coming from down the corridor. Instantly recognizing Blake's voice, Summer dropped the wristwatch and ran forward. _Hold on Blake! I'm here!_

After zigzagging through a series of confusing corridors, Summer came across Blake. She was encased in a glue-like substance, helpless to the Grimm parasite that was emerging from the egg in front of her. Without hesitation, Summer took aim at the parasite and opened fire. Both the parasite and the egg exploded, sending black, tar-like blood all over the floor. 

Before Summer could turn to Blake, a Grimm suddenly appeared from down the corridor. _So that's where you all were...you were protecting the eggs!_ The Grimm snarled, angry that one of its parasites was denied a chance to claim another victim. It ran towards Summer, its claws out and ready to fight.

"Fuck you!" Summer shouted. Before the Grimm got any closer, she tore it apart with several rounds from her rifle. Two more Grimm showed up as support. Just like the Grimm before them, Summer destroyed the reinforcements with a couple dozen rounds. The metal all around Summer and Blake hissed as it dissolved from the blood of the dead Grimm. 

"Rose! Rose!" Blake called out to Summer. She was still trying in vain to free herself from the glue-like substance. 

"Shadow!" With the Grimm dead, Summer ran over to Blake and began freeing her from the hardened slime. It took a couple of tries but eventually, Summer was able to brute force her way through the slime and ripped the pieces away. With Blake free, Summer hoisted her up and held her close. 

"Grab on to me!" Summer shouted as she made her way back to the dropped flares, "Hold on!"

**BOOM! CRASH! BOOM!**

_Shit! The meltdown's started!_ Summer took off, realizing that the explosions she heard from above was the processing station reaching the end of its self-destruction sequence. In just a few minutes, the whole settlement would turn into a giant crater. However, just as Summer made her way back to her flares, the pathway in front of her suddenly exploded. Blake and Summer turned away as fire and smoke blocked their path. With no way through, Summer turned around and ran down the corridor where the Grimm had emerged, making sure to sidestep the areas melted by the monsters' acidic blood. It was not a wise move but Summer had nowhere else to go. Smoke covered the corridor, making it hard for Summer to see. Luckily for her, there seemed to be no Grimm in the way. 

_Just keep moving Summer, just keep moving. Find another path back to the elevator, there has to be more than one. Fuck...if only there wasn't so much smoke, I could actually figure out where I'm going! I can't see where I'm going in this fucking metal maze-_

Summer stopped. She felt a panic attack coming on as she emerged into a large room that was free of smoke, thus letting her get a full view of exactly where she was. She looked around the area...and realized she was surrounded by dozens of Grimm eggs. Everywhere she looked, there was a fresh Grimm egg. Even her worst nightmares were nothing compared to this. 

**HIIISSS...HIIISSS...HIIISSS...HIIISSS...**

_Okay...what the fuck was that?_ Summer held her breath as she slowly turned around. As she did, both her and Blake felt like they were on a boat that was drifting towards a waterfall. They knew that they wouldn't like whatever it was making those hissing noises...they just didn't expect to see what they saw. 

On one end was its tail, or rather its sack. It was a giant, tube-like structure that was suspended to the ceiling by the same glue-like substance that Blake was trapped in. The tube, which resembled a caterpillar's body, was semi-transparent, letting Summer and Blake see the Grimm eggs inside it. Much to their disgust, a Grimm egg was ejected from the tail's end, slathering the ground with more slime. 

Then, Summer turned even further and saw what the tail (or, in more technical terms, the ovipositor) was attached to. Before this moment, the Grimm that the survivors had encountered were roughly the size of normal humans and faunus. Some were slightly larger than the others but none of them could be described as "towering". This behemoth, however, fit that description. It was gigantic, being at least fourteen feet tall. It resembled the rest of the Grimm, but its immense size made Summer feel like she had just encountered the species for the first time. As Summer and Blake stared at it, the Grimm Queen slowly turned its head towards the human and faunus intruders. It started snarling at them, angered at their presence.

 _What did Cardin say again? That there's one female that runs the whole show? Holy Brothers, the man was an idiot but he was right about one thing. Why the FUCK did he have to be right about this?!_

Just to make the situation worse, Summer and Blake noticed two, regular-sized Grimm emerging from two separate corridors. They didn't attack them immediately, making Summer believe that they were only here to defend the Queen. Without taking her eyes off of the two Grimm foot soldiers, Summer gently lowered Blake to the ground in order to free her hands. Just to keep Blake safe, she whispered for Blake to get behind her. 

So far, the two Grimm soldiers didn't make a move to attack. In fact, the more Summer watched them, the more she realized that they were hesitant to make a move. After everything these creatures had put her through, this was the first time she's seen them second-guess their actions. That got Summer thinking. _Okay...so...they're not attacking us...which means they're only here to support the Queen. Makes sense, since the Queen is stuck in that spot. There's no way she can move around with the sack glued to the wall. But...why are they acting so cautiously? Are they actually considering me the threat here? But...why? Is it because I'm armed-_

Suddenly, Summer got an idea. While making sure Blake was still behind her, Summer turned around and raised her flamethrower. She then shot out a steady stream of fire, right above the eggs. Just as she expected, the Grimm Queen started roaring in anger. _Holy shit...they're protecting the eggs! That's why they're not attacking!_

After ending her stream of fire, Summer turned and aimed the flamethrower right at the eggs. She then looked up to the Grimm Queen, hoping it would understand her intentions. _Call your lapdogs off, bitch. Or else I'll fry every single fucking egg in this place._ The Grimm Queen roared again, angry at what the human was threatening to do...and scared that she'll lose all of her children. To Summer and Blake's surprise, the Queen turned to the two Grimm foot soldiers and snarled at them. Although they couldn't understand what she was saying, the actions of the soldiers told them all they needed to know; as soon as the Queen started roaring at them, the soldiers retreated back into their respective corridors. 

It was a strange feeling for Summer. For so long, she felt helpless, tormented by these monsters. This was the first time she felt some semblance of power over them. Although it was a great feeling, Summer also didn't want to stick around and see just how far she could go with threatening the Queen's children. While keeping her flamethrower aimed at the eggs, Summer started guiding Blake down to the corridor behind them. The Grimm Queen continued to snarl at them, not taking its eyes off of Summer for a single second. 

**SHLICK!**

Summer and Blake turned their attention to an egg that had just opened up. Inside, a Grimm parasite stuck its ugly head up and stared at the two of them. Although Summer in the past had been terrified by this sight, seeing the creature now filled her with...anger. It made her think back to all the times in her life that she was tormented by these creatures, either physically or mentally. 

A Grimm parasite killed Taiyang Xiao Long. The Grimm that emerged from Taiyang ended up wiping out her entire crew.

She would later develop PTSD from her encounter with this Grimm.

Blake's family stumbled across a cave full of Grimm parasites. When security officer Vernal brought several back, this resulted in an outbreak of Grimm, which ended up destroying the Hadley's Hope settlement. 

These monsters would then wipe out most of the marines that Summer had traveled with. 

They tried to kill Blake, an innocent child who was now traumatized for life. 

Although it was Mercury Black's fault, one Grimm parasite tried to strangle her to death. 

And last but not least, these monsters stole ten years of her life, causing her to miss out on her daughter Ruby's childhood. Ruby Rose then went missing because she tried to find her in the Solitas tundra. 

A vast majority of the misfortune in her life at this point could be traced back to these creatures. Now, just looking at the Grimm parasite emerging from its egg, Summer realized that even though the whole settlement was going to be destroyed anyways...she wanted to see these creatures burn. She wanted them to feel all the pain she felt ever since her first encounter with their species. She turned her attention back to the Grimm Queen, fully pissed off. 

_You ruined my life. Now...feel my wrath!_

Summer let out a stream of fire, this time aimed right at the Grimm eggs. The Queen roared as Summer covered the room in fire, managing to set all the eggs ablaze. No matter how hard the Queen roared, it couldn't do anything thanks to its ovipositor glued to the ceiling. Summer couldn't help but feel sadistic joy as she watched the Queen roar at her, unable to stop the rampage. 

The two Grimm foot soldiers returned. This time, Summer was ready. _Fuck you!_ She opened fire, cutting one down before it even had a chance to react. _Fuck you too!_ The second Grimm foot soldier tried to strike, but was quickly destroyed by a wave of bullets.

With the two foot soldiers dead, Summer began opening firing into the nest. The adrenaline rush was in full swing as she filled the Grimm eggs with lead, not even letting the fire finish the job. As the eggs exploded from gunfire, she couldn't help but think back to all the people who have been hurt by the Grimm. The memories came in rapid fire; Raven Branwen being captured by a Grimm while roaming around the ship's vents, Pietro and Sienna being murdered by the same Grimm, Ironwood and Greenleaf being taken alive to be impregnated by the parasites, Cardin being captured after his valiant last stand. Remembering all the people she had lost to the Grimm...it filled her with a rage that she had never felt before. 

_Fuck all of you._

_Fuck. All. Of. You!_

_FUCK ALL OF YOU!_

_FUCK. ALL. OF. YOU!_

_GO TO HELL, YOU FUCKING SONS OF BITCHES!_

Eventually, she began running low on ammo on her rifle. That didn't matter as she quickly switched to her grenade launcher before she ran out. This time, she turned her attention to the Grimm Queen. 

**SHU-SHICK!** **BOOM!** Taking aim right at the Queen's egg sac, Summer fired off a grenade, causing the sac to burst. The Queen roared in pain as pus, fluid, and undeveloped eggs slipped out of the sac. 

**SHU-SHICK!** **BOOM!** **SHU-SHICK!** **BOOM!** **SHU-SHICK!** **BOOM!** **SHU-SHICK!** **BOOM!** The Queen roared some more as Summer fired off several more grenade, destroying the rest of the sac. If it wasn't the grenades being launched into the sack causing damage, it was the grenades themselves when they exploded from within . 

With the whole place on fire, Blake tugged at Summer's arm, eager to leave. "Let's go!" she screamed. 

Summer nodded her head. Although she wanted to finish the Queen off, she remembered that the base was ready to explode in a few minutes. She then guided Blake down the corridor. As she did, she continued her assault on the Grimm by shooting out more streams of fire from her flamethrower.

"Behind us!" Blake suddenly screamed. Summer turned around. Another Grimm foot soldier had arrived, angry at what was happening. Before it even had a chance to strike, Summer cut it down with the last of her rifle's magazine. 

Now out of ammo, Summer reached for her grenade belt. _Okay...one grenade should do the trick. Or maybe, two grenades? No, how about-oh, fuck it._ Realizing she was running low on time, Summer shook her head, then proceeded to chuck the entire belt into the fire. She then picked up Blake and ran down the empty corridor. The grenades started going off just a few seconds later, forcing Summer to cling onto Blake even tighter as she ran down the steam-and-smoke covered corridors. 

As Summer fled the area, the Grimm Queen roared in pain as its egg sac detached from the ceiling, causing the Queen to fall down as well. It continued to roar as it forced itself to stand up. Eventually, the section of the Queen's body that was connected to the egg sac broke apart. It tore apart, resembling glue being pulled off a piece of paper. 

Unfortunately for Summer and Blake...this meant that the Queen was now free to roam. 

* * *

The base was now in full-on meltdown mode as Summer and Blake made their way back to the elevators. The alarms were blaring loudly and the corridors were filled to the brim with steam and smoke. Thankfully, Summer was eventually able to find the flares she had dropped earlier, letting her find the path back to the elevators. If it hadn't been for her flares, she would've been lost for good. 

**BOOM!**

Summer almost lost her footing as the corridor behind her suddenly exploded. Despite that, she pushed forward, not even bothering to look back and see how much damage the explosion caused. 

As soon as Summer reached the elevators, she reached over and hit the button, calling one down. She cursed when she realized that the elevator had been called up, forcing her to wait for it to come back down. _Oh, COME ON, who else is using these fucking elevators right now?!_ It didn't help that the alarms kept repeating the same message over and over, filling Summer and Blake with dread and anxiety:

**Attention. Emergency. All personnel must evacuate immediately.**

**Attention. Emergency. All personnel must evacuate immediately. You now have 4 minutes to reach minimum safe distance.**

Summer looked up. The elevator was still, aggravatingly, making its way down. It may as well have been deliberately taking its time at the rate it was going. Fearing that the elevator wouldn't arrive in time, Summer rushed over and clicked the button for the second elevator. Looking up, Summer cursed again when she saw that this elevator also needed to come down from whatever floor it was on. 

**SCREEECH!**

Summer turned around, her eyes widened at what she just heard. Although she only encountered it a few minutes ago, she instantly recognized the roar as that of the Grimm Queen. _No...no! How did you survive all of that?! That's not possible, I destroyed that area!_

"Come on, goddamn it!" Summer shouted, repeatedly banging on the elevator buttons as she did. Still nothing. With the Queen on its way, Summer rushed over to the emergency escape ladder that was right by the elevators. It would be a pretty steep climb but Summer was willing to do it, especially knowing what was coming. "Hold on to me!" she shouted. Blake did so, clutching onto Summer's neck for dear life. 

Just as Summer climbed one rung of the ladder, she stopped when she saw the Grimm Queen arrive from down the corridor. It snarled and hissed as it turned its head towards Summer and Blake, still angry about what happened in the nest. It then made its way towards them, its giant footsteps thundering with each step. 

**WHIIIIIRRRR!**

Summer quickly turned around when she heard a familiar noise from behind her. She nearly squealed with joy when she saw one of the elevators open up, having finally reached the bottom floor. With the Grimm Queen in hot pursuit, Summer rushed into the elevator and slammed the button for the surface level. She then lowered Blake down in order to free her hands to use the flamethrower.

The Grimm Queen roared some more as it bashed its way towards Summer and Blake. Using just sheer brute force, it crashed into the emergency ladder that Summer was using, destroying it completely. It then turned its attention to the elevators, prepared to do the same to the doors.

Before it could swing, Summer fired a stream of flame right at its face. The Grimm Queen hissed and backed away, driven away by the fire. Much to Summer's dismay, the flames died much sooner than the previous blasts. It was close to being spent in terms of fuel. 

The Grimm Queen charged again but, fortunately for Summer and Blake, the doors finally closed and the elevator made its slow journey up to the surface. Summer fired a short burst of fire this time, trying her best to conserve what was left of the flamethrower fuel.

As the elevator went up, Summer turned her attention to the automated voice sounding off the alarm:

**Attention. Emergency. All personnel must evacuate immediately. You now have 2 minutes to reach minimum safe distance.**

Summer grimaced; they were cutting it close in terms of time. However, with the Grimm Queen stuck at the bottom floor, at least they didn't have to worry about it any longer. 

/

/

The Grimm Queen hissed as it watched the human and faunus escape from its clutches. The woman who had destroyed her nest was getting away and there was seemingly nothing it could do to stop her. 

Suddenly, the second set of elevator doors opened. There was no one inside, which didn't matter to the Grimm Queen. The Queen turned to it, recognizing that this was the same device that the human woman used to escape from it. 

It then began to wonder if it was large enough to fit her.

/

/

The elevator doors opened and Summer and Blake rushed out, Summer hoping that Penny was ready for takeoff. Instead, all she saw was a balcony that overlooked most of the processing station...and no bullhead. As the station around her started collapsing, Summer couldn't believe that the android just abandoned them. 

"No," Summer whispered, shocked that Penny would do this, "I told you to wait. I told you to wait! Penny...goddamn you!" 

Summer couldn't help but imagine how it went. Qrow probably warned Penny not to leave. Penny then calculated that their chances of survival would increase if they were to leave before the last few minutes till destruction. Qrow, too weak to stop Penny, was then forced to go along with Penny's plan in abandoning the rescue mission. Although she didn't fault Penny for thinking about Qrow's safety, she still couldn't believe the android would leave her and Blake like this. 

Suddenly, Summer heard whirring from the second elevator. Moving over to that side, she saw that the elevator was coming up to the surface area. Just then, another evil thought raced through Summer's head. She began wondering if the Grimm Queen had somehow figured out how to use the elevator to reach the surface. 

As the base fell more and more into disarray, the platform that Summer and Blake was standing on grew more and more unstable. With the Grimm Queen possibly on the second elevator and the base in total meltdown, Summer picked Blake up, wanting to protect her to the bitter end. Realizing that she was completely out of ammo with both her rifle and flamethrower, she dropped it to the ground. 

_This is the end, kid. I'm sorry...I'm sorry...I tried._

The second elevator finally opened...and Summer felt her stomach drop when she saw the Grimm Queen inside. "Close your eyes, baby," Summer whispered to Blake. This was the end. It was a valiant effort, but Summer knew when she was beat-

"-Look!" Blake suddenly screamed. Summer turned around. As if on cue with the Grimm Queen arriving on the elevator, Penny and the bullhead had re-emerged from below the balcony. Summer started smiling, overjoyed at the sight of the military aircraft making its way towards them. 

The Grimm Queen began approaching Summer and Blake, its heavy footsteps making the metal balcony shake violently. Moving quickly, Summer boosted Blake up to the landing ramp, which Penny had lowered down (Penny didn't want to land since she didn't want to risk knocking the platform down). Blake managed to grab ahold of the ramp and pulled herself into the ship. She then turned around and reached for Summer. "Come on!" she shouted, "Come on! Miss Rose, reach!" 

Summer did so, managing to grab the ramp. With Blake's help, Summer pulled herself into the ramp and onto the bullhead. Now on the bullhead, Summer and Blake ran in and joined Penny in the cockpit area. 

"Punch it, Penny!" Summer shouted. 

Penny nodded her head, confirming the order. Penny raised the landing ramp, then turned the bullhead around (although she did accidentally slam into some metal debris that was on the balcony while maneuvering the bullhead to flee the station). After clearing the balcony, Penny went full speed towards the atmosphere, going as far away from Hadley's Hope as possible. 

The bullhead shook for a few seconds, a result of Penny flying by structures that were exploding due to the meltdown. The shaking soon stopped once Penny was high enough in the atmosphere, far from the settlement. Knowing what was coming, Summer covered Blake's eyes with her hands to shield her from what happened next.

The inside of the bullhead was suddenly filled with a bright, white light, blinding both Summer and Penny. Then, all of a sudden...

**BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM!**

The bullhead shook violently as the processing station's heat exchangers finally gave way and detonated. From outside the bullhead, a giant mushroom cloud formed as the entire settlement was reduced to ash, the explosion destroying everything in its path. The blinding light lasted for a few seconds but once the bullhead was far enough from the explosion, the light disappeared. The shaking stopped as well and, all of a sudden, everything was calm and quiet. As if nothing had happened. 

For Summer, she let out a breath that she didn't realize she was holding. That explosion took out the entire Grimm nest, which also meant that whatever Grimm was left had just been vaporized. The nightmare...was finally over.

"It's okay, we're okay," Penny said over the intercom. 

Although she was mad at Penny earlier, Summer couldn't help but smile at what the android just said. _Yeah...we're gonna be okay. In more ways than one._ "Hey," Summer said to Blake, "We made it."

Blake smiled back and hugged her savior. "I knew you'd come," she said. 

Summer kissed Blake on the forehead and hugged her back. _Of course kid. As long as I'm here, nothing bad will ever happen to you._

* * *

Setting: Atlesian military airship, high above Remnant's atmosphere 

Time: A few minutes after Penny brought the bullhead into the hangar bay...

Qrow Branwen was out cold. Field dressing had been applied to the rest of his face, with only his nose and mouth still exposed. Nervous about the marine's health, Summer gently raised Qrow's head to examine his wounds. Despite his head moving, Qrow didn't even register Summer's presence. Blake, who was watching Qrow as well, was concerned that despite everything they had gone through, he wasn't going to make it. 

"He's gonna be all right," Penny Polendina said as she approached Summer and Blake. Blake sighed in relief while Summer turned to the android, wondering what she meant by that. "He's just out. I had to give him another shot for the pain."

When Summer tried to pull Qrow out of his seat, Penny quickly moved her hands away. "Sorry Miss Rose, but we need a stretcher to carry him up to medical."

"Okay," Summer said, accepting that answer. _Poor Qrow...note to self, buy him a drink in Mantle the moment he's cleared to leave the hospital. He deserves it._

Summer, Blake, and Penny exited the bullhead and made their way to medical to get the stretcher for Qrow. As they exited the ramp, Penny turned to Summer. She had a guilty expression on her face. "I'm sorry if I scared you," she said, "That platform was just becoming too unstable. I had to circle and hope that things didn't get too rough to take you off."

Despite all the hostility she showed to Penny, Summer had to admit that Penny came through in the end. Even though she still had a fear of androids due to her experience with Bart Oobleck, Penny proved herself trustworthy. She not only saved them from the Grimm Queen, she saved all of them by calling down the bullhead from the airship. Summer may have been the one to rescue Blake, but Penny was the hero here. "Penny, you did okay," Summer said, smiling at the android. 

Hearing this rare compliment from Summer, Penny couldn't help but gawk at her. "I did?"

"Oh yeah."

**HIIIIISSSSSSSS!**

Summer, Blake, and Penny looked down and noticed that the ground seemed to be dissolving. Before they could investigate the ship to see what was causing this, all of a sudden, Penny's chest exploded right in front of Summer's face.

Blake screamed as what appeared to be a Grimm tail had stabbed through Penny, causing the android to start vomiting out the white circulatory fluid that helped run its systems. Summer panicked as she tried to pull Penny away from the tail. However, it was too late as the tail pulled Penny towards the ship, away from Summer and Blake. That was when the two women saw it.

Emerging from the bullhead's landing gear, the Grimm Queen snarled at the survivors. Part of its chest was bleeding, explaining the acid from earlier. As Penny tried to free herself from the Queen's grip, all of a sudden, the Queen pulled Penny right into its claw-like arms.

**SVASH!**

In one swift thrust, the Grimm Queen tore Penny in half and tossed her two halves across the hangar. Penny's legs landed away from Summer and Blake while Penny's top half landed by the bullhead. Since she was an android, Penny was still functioning. Heavily damaged, but technically alive.

_Fuck._

_Fuck!_

_FUCK!_

Summer couldn't believe what she was seeing. The Queen had snuck aboard the bullhead, probably when Penny accidentally hit the metal debris on the balcony while turning the ship around. Just when she thought it was finally over, the monsters came back to mess with her one more time. This time, it wasn't an ordinary Grimm, it was the almighty Queen herself. The behemoth lowered itself down from the bullhead. It then roared as it slowly made its way towards Summer and Blake.

 _Okay Summer...don't make any rash decisions here. Your priority is Blake's safety. Just focus on protecting the kid, then figure out how to fight this monster._ Turning to Blake, she saw that the kid had tripped over from fear, frozen in her spot as she stared at the Grimm Queen. "Go!" Summer forcefully whispered to Blake, "Blake, move!"

Sensing Blake's hesitation, the Grimm Queen turned its attention towards her. To stop the Queen from going after Blake, Summer raised her arms to catch its attention. "No, here!" she shouted. The Queen turned its head, now focused on Summer. "Over here! Here!"

With the Grimm Queen changing targets, Summer quickly turned her head to Blake. "Run, Blake, run!"

That was enough to finally get the faunus girl moving. As the Queen continued its slow approach, Blake ran over to an open vent on the floor and dove in. She then shut the vent behind her, locking herself inside. 

Now that Blake had found a place to hide, Summer quickly took off down the hangar bay to an open hallway leading into the equipment area, where the marines stored the paladin units. The Queen took off, chasing after her. Despite its massive size, the Grimm Queen was quickly catching up to Summer. Luckily, Summer was able to reach the equipment area and managed to press the button closing the blast doors. Right before the Queen could catch her, it slammed its head onto the closing blast doors, locking Summer inside.

Unfortunately, that also meant that Summer locked the Grimm Queen in the hangar bay with Penny, Blake, and Qrow. 

Back inside the hangar bay, Penny and Blake watched as the Queen slowly made its way back to them, having lost interest in trying to capture Summer. Its giant footsteps made the metal grate squeak, irritating Blake as she was right below it. 

Suddenly, the Queen crouched down and ripped one of the grates off with ease, exposing Blake. Blake quickly crawled away, hoping to outmaneuver the monster. She only made it a few feet away before the Grimm Queen turned around and ripped off another piece of the grate, exposing Blake once again. It then shot its sharp tail down, hoping to stab Blake right there on the spot. Luckily, Blake was able to crawl away in time and went further down the vent. 

Blake panicked when she hit a wall. Before she could turn around and crawl down a different direction, the Queen ripped the grate off, finally cornering her. Just staring at the gigantic Queen was enough for Blake to freeze on the spot out of fear. She screamed as she awaited for her inevitable demise.

**WHIIIIIRRRR!**

The Queen stopped its assault when the blast doors that led to Summer's hiding spot opened up. As they moved up, Blake and Penny saw that it was Summer. She was inside one of the non-combat, labor-only paladin units that were stored inside. Once the doors fully opened, Summer walked her paladin unit inside the hangar bay. She had a look of pure rage as she glared at the Queen. 

"GET AWAY FROM HER, YOU BITCH!" she shouted. She then raised the paladin's arms and aimed them right at the Queen, challenging the monster to one last battle. 

The Grimm Queen roared, accepting the challenge. It moved away from Blake, allowing the girl to exit the vent and run to safety behind a couple of boxes. 

As the Queen charged at Summer, Summer quickly reacted by swinging one of the paladin unit's arms at it. The arm connected, knocking the Queen down to the ground, shaking the floor as it made contact. The Queen roared and quickly recovered, getting up to charge at Summer once again. Summer growled back at the Queen, then slammed the paladin's arms into it once again. This time, the Queen was knocked back, causing it to tumble into boxes of heavy-duty military equipment.

The Queen stood up. Despite the heavy strikes to its head, it looked more annoyed than hurt. That didn't deter Summer; in fact, seeing the Queen take the strikes with ease only strengthened her resolve. "COME ON!" she shouted, challenging the Queen to come at her, "COME ON! I'M RIGHT HERE!"

The Queen rushed forward. This time, instead of knocking it around, Summer used the paladin's arms to grab ahold of the creature's neck. Despite the Queen's efforts to wriggle away, Summer held it in place. She then began to squeeze, hoping she could crush the Queen's neck. Even with the threat of the Queen's blood melting the paladin unit's arms, Summer pressed forward, believing that it was a risk worth taking. 

Suddenly, the Grimm Queen shot its tail up and sent it right at Summer. The tail stabbed right through the cockpit doors, but missed Summer's head by a few inches. The Queen pulled back and tried again, still missing Summer but coming closer to her face. Fearing that a third strike would finally kill her, Summer let go of the Queen's neck, allowing the monster to retreat a few steps. 

Summer and the Queen began circling each other, now that both of them were able to get a few attacks in. Summer tried swiping at the Queen but the Queen kept her distance, not wanting to be knocked down to the ground again. At the same time, the Grimm Queen tried stabbing Summer with its tail again. This time, Summer was more wary of the tail and maintained her distance from it. The battle quickly turned into a stalemate as both Summer and the Queen became hesitant in moving forward. 

_Come on...think Rose. There's got to be a way to beat this thing. You can't shoot it down, this paladin's not built for that. Not like you know how to use the combat paladin units in the first place. And you can't just keep punching this thing forever. Come on, think...think...think-_

Suddenly, a thought occurred to Summer. Here they were on an airship thousands of miles from the surface of Remnant. In the hangar bay, the bullheads were dropped down after a set of blast doors on the floor were opened up. Remembering that the paladin units were connected to the airship's network, Summer turned to the computer inside the cockpit and typed in the code to open one of the hangar doors. She smiled when she saw the one next to the bullhead open up.

Now, all she needed to do was get the Queen to fall inside. Then, she could eject her back down to the Solitas tundra. 

Suddenly, the Queen rushed forward, catching Summer off-guard. To stop its assault, Summer reached up and grabbed ahold of the Queen's neck once again. As the Queen thrashed and roared in pain, Summer began moving towards the hangar doors to finally get rid of it once and for all. 

The Queen moved its head, now fully facing the paladin unit. Summer felt like the monster was staring right into her soul. Suddenly, the Queen's mouth opened and its tongue shot out, stabbing right through the cockpit doors. Although the Queen missed, Summer was still caught off-guard by the suddenness of the attack. _Fuck's sake, even its tongue is a spear!_ Summer gasped as the Queen shot its tongue out again. This time, the monster was able to land a strike mere inches away from Summer's face. It was too close for Summer since she could practically feel the Grimm Queen's tongue on her face.

In retaliation, Summer activated the blowtorch function on the paladin. The Queen roared as a steady stream of fire hits its face, temporarily blinding it. Taking advantage of this, Summer used both arms of the paladin unit to lift the Queen up and positioned her right above the hangar doors. _So long, motherfucker. Good riddance!_ Summer released her grip, dropping the Queen down into the second set of blast doors right before the outside of the airship.

Unfortunately for Summer, as the Queen fell, it managed to grab ahold of the paladin unit's chest plates. Summer screamed as the paladin lurched over and fell into the silo. She landed on top of the Queen, which somehow survived despite the heavy paladin unit landing on top of it. 

"Rose!" Blake shouted. She could only watch in horror as Summer disappeared from sight, falling into the silo with the Grimm Queen. 

Inside the silo, Summer stirred as she was nearly knocked unconscious from the fall. Hearing Blake's voice, Summer quickly snapped out of her haze and realized where she was. The Queen was literally right underneath her and at any moment, it could free itself and kill her. Acting quickly, Summer released herself from the paladin unit and climbed out. She then jumped towards a nearby ladder, which had been installed inside the silo for repairmen to use.

_Come on Summer, don't give up! Climb like your life depended on it...because it does! Ignore all those aches in your body and your busted forehead, you can take a painkiller for that later-_

Summer gasped when she felt something grab her foot. Looking down, the Queen was starting to free itself from the paladin unit that it was trapped under. Even in its weakened state, the Queen's grip was strong, preventing her from moving up. Summer tried kicking the monster away but no matter what she did, she couldn't free herself from the monster's hold.

Now stuck in place, Summer looked around for a possible way out of this predicament. That was when she saw it; the manual-release switch that was in place in case the marines couldn't open the blast doors via remote. Although she was inside the silo as well, Summer realized that this was the only option she had left. She gripped the ladder tightly, knowing what was about to happen...then flipped the switch.

The air inside the airship started to rush out as the second set of blast doors opened. Right below them was several thousand feet that led straight down to the Solitas tundra. Summer held on for dear life as the air inside the airship was being sucked out. The Queen roared, now holding onto Summer's foot to save itself. 

Inside the hangar bay, Penny and Blake screamed as they were being sucked towards the silo. Despite being torn in half, Penny managed to grab ahold of a metal grate to keep herself from being sucked out of the airlock. Suddenly, Blake lost her grip, causing her to move dangerously close to the silo. Fortunately for her, Penny grabbed ahold of her just in time. "Penny!" Blake shouted as she struggled to move closer to the android.

"Hold on, kid!" Penny shouted, trying to maintain her grip on both the metal grate and Blake. 

Back inside the silo, Summer screamed as the combined force of the air rushing out of the blast doors and the Grimm Queen holding onto her foot started tearing her arms apart. Knowing that she couldn't hold on much longer, Summer quickly began kicking at her boot, hoping she could get it off of her to release herself from the Queen's grip. 

_Come on...get off of me._

_Get off of me!_

_GET OFF OF ME!_

_GET. OFF. OF. ME-_

The Queen roared when, all of a sudden, Summer's boot came off. Now that it had lost its grip, the Queen hissed and screamed as it descended back down to the surface. Screeching and roaring, it was unable to do anything to save itself since it was in freefall. The Queen only stopped roaring once it made contact with the planet's surface. Even though the Solitas tundra was covered in snow, not even the snow was soft enough to lessen the impact. The Queen practically exploded as it hit the surface, dissolving all the snow and ice around it instantly with its dark, tarry blood. 

Although Summer, Blake, Qrow, and Penny didn't get to see it...the monster that had given birth to all the Grimm in the area...the creature responsible for all this chaos...was finally no more. 

With the Queen gone, Summer made the difficult trip back up the ladder. Fighting through the air rushing at her and the pain in both of her arms and legs, she managed to reach the top. After making her way out of the silo, she then crawled over to the manual set of controls controlling the airlock. It took some effort but she managed to press the big, red button that shut the airlock. 

Slowly, the airlock closed. Once they did, the atmosphere in the airship returned to normal. The equipment stopped moving around and the intense pressure that Summer felt while she was climbing up the ladder disappeared. The area was peaceful once again. 

Summer lay there, catching her breath. Although she was happy that the Queen was no longer a threat, she quickly turned her attention to Blake and Penny to see if they had survived. She sighed in relief when she saw that they were okay. Penny was clutching onto Blake and the metal grate while Blake was holding onto Penny for support. _You did it again, Penny. That's three times you saved the day._

Even in her weakened state, Summer managed to crawl over to them. Blake, seeing Summer approach them, immediately stood up to hug her. "Mommy!" she cried out.

Summer hugged her back. It took a second for her to register what Blake just called her. _Huh...that was the first time she called me that. That feels...nice._ "Oh, thank god," Summer whispered as she held Blake close to her. 

Penny, despite her condition, smiled at the two of them. "That was...quite a sensational performance, Miss Rose," Penny said weakly, "Not bad for a human." Summer chuckled; after all the chaos she had been put through, she needed a good laugh. 

* * *

Setting: Personnel sleeping quarters (where the pods for hyper-sleep were located)

Time: Several minutes later...

Blake Belladonna watched in awe as the sleeping pods for Qrow Branwen and Penny Polendina closed on them. Qrow was still knocked out from his medication while Penny was wrapped in plastic to preserve what remained of her android body. As she watched them sleep, Blake couldn't help but wonder how Qrow would react once he woke up and was told what happened while he was asleep. That the Grimm Queen snuck aboard the bullhead and tried to kill them all. That Summer used one of the paladins to battle the Grimm Queen before shooting it out of the airlock. She wondered if he would freak out or have a good laugh about it. 

Moving to Summer, Blake watched as she made the final touches to their sleeping pods. She made sure that they would wake up once the airship reached Mantle, giving them enough time to prepare for disembarkation. 

Summer smiled at the girl, then guided her to their own set of sleeping pods, right next to Qrow and Penny. Curious about the set-up, Blake turned to Summer and asked, "Are we gonna sleep all the way home?"

Normally, the thought of sleeping would terrify Summer since that only brought on the Grimm nightmares. But for once, she felt...optimistic. She couldn't describe it but this was the first time in a long while that she felt hopeful. That she could finally put this living nightmare behind her. In fact, she was looking forward to sleep. It would probably be the first good night of sleep she had in a long while. 

"All the way home," Summer said happily.

"Can I dream?"

"Yes, honey. I think we both can."

Thinking back to when they last spoke in the settlement, Summer reached over and touched Blake's nose, making the little girl laugh. "Boop," Summer whispered, "Gotcha back, you little sneak. Now...sleep tight."

Blake smiled. "Affirmative."

/

/

The airship was an hour into the journey back to civilization. As it left the Solitas tundra, Summer and Blake began to dream. They dreamt of better days ahead, now that they were finished with the Grimm threat once and for all.

After all they had been through, they finally felt at peace with the world. Regardless of what happened next once the airship reached Mantle, at least they had each other. 

**THE END**

* * *

EPILOGUE: RUBY ROSE

_"Final report of the Ozpin-Salem towing crew designated 'LLNRPLY19', commanding the bullhead 'Nostromo'. Third Officer reporting. The other members of the crew - Taiyang, Sienna, Pietro, Lionheart, Oobleck and Captain Raven - are dead. Cargo and bullhead destroyed. Due to the lack of available vehicles and the fierce Solitas tundra, I have placed myself in hibernation. Hopefully rescue will be sent once the company realizes that a whole crew went missing. With a little luck, I'm hoping that rescue won't take longer than six weeks. This is Rose, last survivor of the 'Nostromo'...signing off."_

/

/

Setting: White Fang base, somewhere in Atlas

Time: Three months before Summer Rose was woken up from hibernation

The official reports from Vale said that she died during an encounter with the White Fang in Mistral. Although she understood why it had to be done, it didn't sit right with Ruby Rose that she had to lie to her friends and family in order to be able to move freely. With the Ozpin-Salem megacorporation breathing down her neck, threatening to stop her if she dug any deeper into her mother's case, Ruby had to do what she did in order to protect herself and the others around her.

Unfortunately, to prevent Ozpin-Salem from hurting anyone involved with her, she had to convince the world she was dead.

It seemed odd, turning to the White Fang for help. Although they were considered enemies of the state by all the major kingdoms, Ruby and the White Fang found common ground over their shared distrust of Ozpin-Salem. So when she asked them for help in finding clues to her mother's disappearance and getting away from Ozpin-Salem, they agreed, but only for the opportunity to fight back against the corporation. 

At the moment, Ruby was helping a couple of White Fang mechanics repair one of their vehicles. She figured that since they were helping her out with her mission, the least she could do was make herself useful. 

"Rose!" a voice from behind her called out. Ruby stopped what she was doing and turned around. Standing there was a man she didn't recognize. He had orange hair and was wearing a white suit, long black pants, and a bowler hat. In his hand was a cane, which he didn't seem to need since he was walking around with ease. 

"Can I help you?" Ruby asked.

"I'm Roman Torchwick. I'm not a member of the White Fang but I do business with them from time to time. They told me your story...sorry to hear about your mother." 

Ruby nodded her head. She's heard the "sorry about your loss" line for years now. At this point, she was sick of it, especially knowing that her mother wasn't dead. Or, at least, that's what she believed. Most of the people she talked to were losing hope of finding Summer alive since it had been ten years since she disappeared.

"What can I do for you, Mr. Torchwick," Ruby asked.

"Well...it's about your mother, actually. We think we may have found her, Ruby." 

Ruby's eyes widened upon hearing that. She approached Roman, wondering what lead he had stumbled across. 

"A commercial vessel, the Anesidora, has recovered what we believe to be the flight recorder unit of the Nostromo," Roman continued.

"Where?"

"Zeta Reticuli, it's a fishing community located in Northern Solitas." 

"What did it tell you?"

"We don't know. The unit was taken to the city of Argus in Mistral. It's proprietorial material, so the White Fang wants it to be collected as soon as possible. And it goes without saying that Ozpin-Salem wants to collect the unit as well. Now, Argus is a major trading center in the region. It's a permanent freeport facility-"

"-I know what it is, Mr. Torchwick," Ruby snapped, not liking his condescending tone. 

"Oh, good then," Roman said, slightly embarrassed, "Anyways, transit's arranged. There's a courier ship called the Torrens heading out that way in two days. We're going to travel out to-"

"-wait, we?" 

"Me and my second-in-command, Neopolitan. And you, if you're willing. Look, Rose...when this job came across my desk, I read the case history. I know why you faked your death and joined the White Fang. I know why you're working in the region where Summer Rose went missing. You're still looking, aren't you?" 

Ruby looked away from Roman, unsure what to say. He was 100% correct about everything...but it still made her feel uncomfortable. She had done so much, sacrificed so much, and she was starting to wonder if this was all worth it. Her mother had been gone for ten years, what were the chances she survived this long in the restricted territory of the Solitas tundra? Not even the best survivalist could last this long on their own.

"I've been cleared to offer you a place on the Torrens," Roman continued, "if you want to come along. Maybe there'll be some closure for you." 

As Ruby repeated Roman's words in her head, she thought back to all the times that she was told to give up on her quest. That her mother would have wanted her to move on with her life. But the more she thought about it, the more Ruby realized she would never be able to just move on. She wanted to know what happened to Summer, no matter what it took.

And if it meant working with a complete stranger who showed up, out of the blue, with a potential lead on her mother's whereabouts...then so be it. 

/

/

**RUBY ROSE WILL RETURN IN...**

**"GRIMM: ISOLATION"**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Based on: Aliens (1986)
> 
> Just a reminder, if you haven't done so already, go over to the "POLL 1" chapter and vote for your favorite of the movie selections! Whichever gets the most votes will be the next full-length, movie-to-RWBY adaptation, right after I finish work on "Grimms".
> 
> AN1: We made it! It took a while but it's finally finished, the first full-length movie adaptation for this fic! With more to come!
> 
> AN2: About that "Grimm: Isolation" preview...that won't be happening anytime soon. But I thought it'd be cool to include a teaser for what's to come IF I decide to continue with this universe. Obviously, "Isolation" would be next since I've been hyping up the whereabouts of Ruby Rose in the "Grimms" universe. 
> 
> AN3: No, I'm not going to do "Alien 3", nor do I have interest in any of the other "Alien" sequels. As far as I'm concerned, the series only has three canon installments; "Alien", "Aliens", and "Alien: Isolation".


	28. CLOSED, PLEASE SEE THE UPDATED POLL 1 - POLL 1: For the next full-length, movie-to-RWBY adaptation (NON-STORY)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone, just a quick poll. Comment below which movie you'd like to see next!

So quick update: Let me make it clear, I'm still fully focused on "Grimms". Once I get my finals out of the way, I can work on adapting the movie. The purpose of this poll is to decide which movie will be next to adapt to the RWBY-verse.

This is real simple, just comment below which of the following choices you'd like to see next. Also, feel free to suggest some ideas you'd like to see for future chapters, I'm all ears. 

  1. **"CRMEN of the Galaxy"**
    1. Plot: Infamous criminals Mercury Black (a scavenger known as "Star-Assassin"), Emerald Sustrai (the adopted daughter of space dictator Salem), Roman Torchwick (a bowler-hat wearing sentient raccoon), Neopolitan (Roman's partner who hails from a sentient race of mute ice cream cones, each one coming with their own amount of ice cream), and Yatsuhashi Daichi (a muscular fugitive who takes everything too literal) join forces to save the galaxy. But first, they must learn to work together. 
    2. Based on: Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)
  2. **"The Gynoid"**
    1. Plot: Summer Rose learns that she's the target of Penny Polendina, a machine disguised as a human who was sent back in time to terminate her. The reason: to prevent the birth of her future daughter, Ruby Rose, who will eventually lead all of humanity against the genocidal computer program known as SALEM. Luckily, she's not alone. Protecting her is Qrow Branwen, a human resistance soldier who was sent back in time as her bodyguard. But will he be enough to stop...the Gynoid? 
    2. Based on: The Terminator (1984) 
  3. **"Inglourious White Fang"**
    1. Plot: It's Great War II. Under the command of the Führer Jacques Schnee, Atlas is close to conquering all of Remnant. In the midst of this world conquest, the Atlesian forces are also attempting to wipe out the entire faunus race, who they deem as "inferior" and "subhuman". In this violent tale of revenge, we follow two groups of faunus who will do whatever it takes to avenge their people. On one side is Blake Belladonna, who lost her entire family to the cruel Atlesian Colonel James Ironwood. On the other side is the "White Fang", a group of faunus soldiers led by Lieutenant Yang Xiao Long and Staff Sergeant Adam "The Cruel Bull" Taurus. Their mission; kill Atlesians. 
    2. Based on: Inglourious Basterds (2009) 
  4. **"Game Over"**
    1. Plot: Jaune Arc and Mercury Black wake up in a dilapidated restroom, chained to opposite sides of the room. In the middle of the room is a dead body; there's a tape recorder in one hand of the dead body and a revolver in the other. They soon learn that they're part of a bigger plan. Mercury must fight to survive. Jaune, however, must kill Mercury within 24 hours. If he doesn't...Pyrrha and their daughter will die...
    2. Based on: Saw (2004) 
  5. **"Grimmors"**
    1. Plot: Country bumpkin repairmen Sun Wukong and Neptune Vasilias are living in Kenyte, Vacuo, a boring small-town in the middle of nowhere. Nothing happens in this town, aside from the usual gossip concerning the conspiracy theorist, doomsday prepper couple Ruby Rose and Weiss Schnee. However, that all changes when seismologist Blake Belladonna picks up on strange, unnatural readings underneath the surface. When people start dying off, the people of Kenyte soon realize they're under attack...
    2. Based on: Tremors (1990) 
  6. **"Raiders of the Lost Relic"**
    1. Plot: World-famous archaeologist/college professor/adventurer Taiyang Xiao Long goes on a worldwide hunt for a mysterious artifact known as "The Relic of the Brothers". Unlike his previous adventures, this one could have dire consequences if the artifact were to fall into the wrong hands. This is because standing in his way are the armies of Atlas, who wish to use the powers of the artifact against their enemies and achieve world domination. Luckily (or unluckily) for him, he has a partner who has the key to finding the Relic; his feisty ex-girlfriend Raven Branwen, who may or may not still hate him.
    2. Based on: Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) 




	29. RWBY-MCU casting, bound to change (NON-STORY)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Due to how expansive and connected the MCU is, I thought I'd write out how I'd cast the universe if I ever do any MCU chapters. I just want to stress that this list is tentative to change and that none of the casting here is set in stone.
> 
> Also, due to how many characters there are in the MCU (probably way more than there are RWBY characters), if I don't cast a character, chances are I might just use an OC in their place.
> 
> And another thing, some character relationships may have to change in order for this AU to work. So expect for some family relationships to not exist.

**NOTE: Since this list is tentative to change, feel free to comment below with your suggestions to the casting.**

**NOTE 2: I'm only going up to Spider-Man: Far From Home. While doing post-phase 3 Marvel stuff could be fun, for now, I'm restricting it to the first three phases.**

Iron Man (2008)

  1. Qrow Branwen as Tony Stark/Iron Man 
  2. Winter Schnee as Pepper Potts 
  3. Raven Branwen as James Rhodes/War Machine 
    1. CHANGE IN LORE: Tony and Rhodey are siblings in this AU 
  4. Whitley Schnee as Happy Hogan 
    1. CHANGE IN LORE: Happy Hogan, Hope van Dyne and Pepper Potts are siblings in this AU 
  5. Penny Polendina as Edwin Jarvis/J.A.R.V.I.S./Vision
  6. James Ironwood as Nick Fury 
  7. Lisa Lavender as Christine Everhart 



The Incredible Hulk (2008)

  1. Pietro Polendina as Bruce Banner/Hulk
  2. Caroline Cordovin as General Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross 



Iron Man 2 (2010)

  1. Harriet Bree as Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow 



Thor (2011)

  1. Nora Valkyrie as Thor 
    1. CHANGE IN LORE: Nora is An and Li's biological daughter in this AU
  2. Russel Thrush as Loki
  3. An Ren as Frigga
  4. Li Ren as Odin 
  5. Lie Ren as Jane Foster 
    1. CHANGE IN LORE: Ren is not An and Li's son in this AU 
  6. Bartholomew Oobleck as Eric Selvig
  7. Octavia Ember as Darcy Lewis 
  8. Flynt Coal as Heimdall 
  9. Clover Ebi as Clint Barton/Hawkeye



Captain America: The First Avenger (2011)

  1. Jaune Arc as Steve Rogers/Captain America 
  2. Pyrrha Nikos as Peggy Carter 
  3. Saphron Arc as Bucky Barnes/The Winter Soldier 
    1. CHANGE IN LORE: Steve and Bucky are siblings in this AU 
  4. Cardin Winchester as Johann Schmidt/Red Skull



The Avengers (2012)

  1. Elm Ederne as Maria Hill
  2. Salem as Thanos



Iron Man 3 (2013)

  1. Robyn Hill as Maya Hansen



Thor: The Dark World (2013)

  1. Amber as Taneleer Tivan/The Collector 



Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014)

  1. Marrow Amin as Sam Wilson/Falcon 
  2. Arthur Watts as Alexander Pierce 
  3. Vine Zeki as Brock Rumlow/Crossbones 
  4. Councilmembers Sleet and Camilla as the S.H.I.E.L.D. Council 
  5. Junior Xiong as Baron Strucker
  6. Miltia Malachite as Wanda Maximoff/The Scarlet Witch
  7. Melanie Malachite as Pietro Maximoff/Quicksilver



(EDIT: Switched Melanie and Miltia around since I forgot that it was Miltia who had the red color scheme) 

Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)

  1. Mercury Black as Peter Quill/Star-Lord
  2. Emerald Sustrai as Gamora
  3. Roman Torchwick as Rocket Raccoon
  4. Neopolitan as Groot
  5. Yatsuhashi Daichi as Drax the Destroyer
  6. Cinder Fall as Nebula 
  7. Tyrian Callows as Ronan the Accuser



Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015)

  1. Merlot as Ultron 



Ant-Man (2015)

  1. Neptune Vasilias as Scott Lang/Ant-Man II
  2. Weiss Schnee as Hope van Dyne/Wasp II 
    1. CHANGE IN LORE: Happy Hogan, Hope van Dyne and Pepper Potts are siblings in this AU 
  3. Jacques Schnee as Hank Pym/Ant-Man
  4. Willow Schnee as Janet van Dyne/Wasp
  5. Scarlet David as Luis 
  6. Sage Ayana as a composite of Dave and Kurt



Captain America: Civil War (2016)

  1. Hazel Rainart as Helmut Zemo 



Doctor Strange (2016)

  1. Glynda Goodwitch as Stephen Strange/Doctor Strange
  2. Ozpin as The Ancient One 



Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2 (2017)

  1. Velvet Scarlatina as Mantis
  2. Marcus Black as Ego the Living Planet 



Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)

  1. Ruby Rose as Peter Parker/Spider-Man
  2. Summer Rose as Aunt May Parker 
    1. CHANGE IN LORE: Summer is not Ruby's mother in this universe. 
  3. Oscar Pine as Michelle "MJ" Jones



Thor: Ragnarok (2017)

  1. Arslan Altan as Valkyrie 



Black Panther (2018)

  1. Blake Belladonna as T'Challa/Black Panther
  2. Adam Taurus as Erik Killmonger
  3. Sun Wukong as Nakia
  4. Ilia Amitola as Okoye
  5. Neon Katt as Shuri
  6. Kali Belladonna as Ramonda
  7. Ghira Belladonna as T'Chaka
  8. Leonardo Lionheart as W'Kabi 
  9. Sienna Khan as N'Jobu



Avengers: Infinity War (2018)

  1. Peter Port as Eitri 



Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018)

  1. Tock as Ava Starr/Ghost
  2. Shay D. Mann as Sonny Burch 
  3. Klein Sieben as Bill Foster



Captain Marvel (2019)

  1. Yang Xiao Long as Carol Danvers/Captain Marvel 
  2. Terra Cotta as Maria Rambeau
  3. Adrian Cotta-Arc as Monica Rambeau 
    1. CHANGE IN LORE: Saphron is not Adrian's mother in this AU
  4. Zwei as Goose
  5. Maria Calavera as Mar-Vell / The Supreme Intelligence 
  6. Taiyang Xiao Long as Joseph Danvers 



Avengers: Endgame (2019)

  1. There aren't that many new characters in Endgame. I just want to say that since Qrow and Winter are Tony and Pepper in this AU, I was thinking their version of Morgan Stark would be **"Willow Weiss Branwen"**. My reasoning is that, after Salem's Snap, Willow, Jacques, and Weiss would be snapped out of existence during the events of "Ant-Man and the Wasp". So, Winter and Qrow end up naming their daughter after Willow and Weiss in honor of their memory. Yeah, Jacque's gone too but then again...it's Jacques. 



Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019)

  1. Sky Lark as Quentin Beck/Mysterio




	30. Nondescript Holiday Spectacular 2020: The Santa Simulation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lie Ren runs a winter holiday-themed "Dungeons & Dragons" game for his friends. Meanwhile, Pyrrha Nikos and the girls take Oscar Pine to a club.
> 
> (PART 1 OF THE NONDESCRIPT HOLIDAY SPECTACULAR 2020)

_ CAST _

  1. _Lie Ren as Leonard Hofstadter_
  2. _Oscar Pine as Rajesh "Raj" Koothrappali_
  3. _Neptune Vasilias as Howard Wolowitz_
  4. _Jaune Arc as Sheldon Cooper_
  5. _Pyrrha Nikos as Penny Hofstadter_
  6. _Yang Xiao Long as Bernadette Rostenkowski_
  7. _Weiss Schnee as Amy Farrah-Fowler_
  8. _Yatsuhashi Daichi as Stuart Bloom_
  9. _Ozma / Ozpin as Santa_



* * *

Setting: Apartment 4A (Jaune Arc and Lie Ren's apartment), downtown City of Vale

Time: Night 

The Christmas fever has taken ahold of Vale. All across the city, citizens were decorating their homes and workplaces with all the standard flair for the holiday. This ranged from Christmas trees, to mistletoes, to colorful lights, and to gingerbread houses. One of those people affected by the holiday was Lie Ren, who was doing his best to liven up his apartment. Lights were dangling by his windows, and he even got a Christmas tree for once.

Albeit, a purple Christmas tree but, according to Oscar, it made him "unique" to have a tree of that color. Jaune was less supportive, calling his purple tree a mutant that wouldn't survive natural selection.

Aside from the tree, he was finishing up his last decoration for the holiday; a cardboard cutout of a fireplace. Per the apartment rules, no fireplaces were installed due to the city building codes. So, he had to make do with a fake one. Helping him out was his girlfriend, Pyrrha Nikos, who was reading off instructions in how to set the fireplace up. It has now been a few months since they started dating. Although they weren't necessarily attracted to each other in the beginning, they eventually got together after getting to know each other better, in addition to the fact that the people they were initially interested in turned them away.

Apparently, Jaune Arc couldn't help but fall in love with their mutual, white-haired heiress friend, while Nora Valkyrie ended up "brother-zoning" Ren, despite their mutual attraction.

 _Perhaps in another universe, we'd be together,_ both Ren and Pyrrha thought regarding their respective former crushes. At least in this particular universe, they were happy with each other. 

"Okay, now holding sides of hearth in position," Pyrrha said, her eyes scanning the page containing the last set of instructions for the cardboard fireplace, "lower mantelpiece assembly onto top tabs." 

_Oh...so just...place the last piece over the obviously open hole on top._ Ren did just that, surprised at how both easy and obvious the last instruction was. Turning to Pyrrha with a big grin on his face, he said, "Look at that, I built a fireplace with my own two hands." 

Pyrrha snickered at that. "You're so butch, Ren."

Before he could make a snarky comment back, he felt a slight sting on his finger. Looking down, he saw that he had nicked his finger while putting the mantelpiece down. _Well...that's certainly a let down after all that._ "Aw...I got a little paper cut."

Examining the cut, Pyrrha couldn't help but sigh at her boyfriend. "Of course you did, your hands are softer than veal."

_Way to go after my manhood, Pyr._

As Pyrrha turned away to fix up the rest of the decorations in the apartment, a thought suddenly occurred to Ren. It was Christmas, and the guys were coming over to play Dungeons & Dragons. Why? According to Neptune Vasilias, it was tradition for them to get together during this time of year. Plus, it was D&D the game was sacred to the boys since it was one of the few activities they could see was "theirs". It was their way of "bonding as bros".

The only difference between this year and the past ones; Ren, Jaune, and Neptune all had girlfriends now. 

"Oh, before I forget," Ren said, trying to figure out the right way to word this, "Saturday, I'm planning a little Dungeons and Dragons night with the guys."

Pyrrha turned to him, a surprised look on her face. "Really? That's how you're gonna spend your Saturday night?" 

"Oh, come on, I hardly ever get a chance to play anymore!" 

"Oh...you poor thing. Is having a real-life girlfriend who has sex with you getting in the way of your board games?"

At that, Ren couldn't help but pause. _Hmm...board games with my male friends...or really hot sex with Pyrrha? That's actually a tough scenario there. Damn it! What do I say here-_

"Little bit, yeah," Ren answered as he did the final touch-ups to his fireplace. Pyrrha was great but...he needed his bro-time. Plus, they had a tradition to maintain. 

Pyrrha couldn't help but pout at what Ren had to say. _Oh COME ON, I'm CLEARLY better than Dungeons and Dragons!_

* * *

Setting: Apartment 4A (other side of the apartment from where Ren and Pyrrha are)

"Oh, great! I've always wanted to play Dungeons and Dragons!"

Weiss Schnee was grinning as soon as she heard the mention of D&D from her current boyfriend, Jaune Arc. Like she said, she always wanted to play. But having to balance both her duties as the heiress to the Schnee Dust Company, as well as her regular day job as a neuroscientist meant that she didn't have much free time. However, it was Christmas! She was sure she could make the time for at least one session of D&D. 

Jaune Arc, as soon as he heard his girlfriend mention her excitement at playing, couldn't help but cringe, not realizing she would want to join. _Sorry Weiss...but this is more for the 'tradition'._ "Yeah, oh, I'm sorry," Jaune said as he approached her. Weiss looked at him, not sure what he was apologizing for. 

"I should've mentioned this earlier. You're not invited." 

Weiss' face dropped at that. _Wait, what? How am I not invited, I'm your girlfriend!_ Jaune, not realizing how blunt he had just been, casually took a seat and began drinking some tea that was on the table. 

"Why not," Weiss whined.

Jaune sighed as he put his mug down. "Weiss, from time to time, we men need to break free from the shackles of civility and get in touch with our primal, animalistic selves."

Weiss blinked for a few seconds, unable to comprehend what she just heard. _Huh? What...wait, what was that, Jaune? Did I hear that right?_

"So," Weiss said, narrowing her eyes at Jaune, "by rolling dice and playing make-believe with little figurines?" 

"Yeah, like a bunch of savages." 

Weiss couldn't help but stare at the blonde buffoon. _Sometimes...I really wonder why I started dating you. You're lucky that you're cute._

* * *

Setting: Yang's apartment, City of Vale 

Yang Xiao Long couldn't help but be annoyed at her husband, Neptune Vasilias (that's a long, long story, one that involves their overbearing mothers, quantum mechanics, cyber-sex while playing 'Remnant the Video Game'). He was apparently playing D&D with the boys on Saturday night. It wasn't the fact that it was Dungeons & Dragons, or that he was having guy's night. It was the fact that she was expecting to spend Saturday night with him, especially since she worked overtime at the laboratory just to have that night free.

Although they were video-chatting at the moment, Neptune could still see the look of annoyance on her face, as if the HD resolution on the webcam was emphasizing her irritation. He could even hear it in her voice. Neptune recognized it as her "I'm-mad-but-I'll-try-my-best-not-to-show-it" voice. 

"Saturday night?!" Yang said over the computer, causing Neptune to grin sheepishly at her, "But I've been working late all week! That was gonna be our night."

"But I have to go," Neptune said, trying his best to calm his hot-headed wife down, "We play as a group. If-if I'm not there, then everyone will blame you. They'll be all 'Yang Xiao Long ruined everything, she's the worst!'."

Yang narrowed her eyes at Neptune, not liking what he was saying. Neptune, recognizing the look she was giving him, faked a cough and tried to backpedal. 

"So...you see...I have to play Dungeons and Dragons...for the marriage!" 

"You're an idiot," Yang said bluntly. 

"Well...I'm your idiot," Neptune said, trying his best smoldering look. Then, placing his wedding ring right in front of the camera, he whispered, "Forever". 

* * *

Setting: Oscar Pine's apartment, City of Vale

"So, listen, I know we talked about getting a bite to eat in Silver Lake, and then seeing the Christmas lights in Griffith Park, but Lie Ren's talking about a big D and D game at his place!" 

Yatsuhashi Daichi couldn't help but smile at what Oscar Pine just told him. _D &D? With the boys? !_

"Saturday night just went from crazy...to epic!" Yatsuhashi shouted. At that, Yatsu and Oscar high-fived, absolutely pumped up for their guys' night. 

* * *

**♫ Our whole universe was in a hot, dense state ♫  
♫ Then nearly fourteen billion years ago expansion started, wait ♫  
♫ The earth began to cool, the autotrophs began to drool ♫  
♫ Neanderthals developed tools ♫  
♫ We built a wall (we built the pyramids) ♫  
♫ Math, science, history, unraveling the mysteries ♫  
♫ That all started with the big bang! Hey! ♫**

* * *

Setting: Apartment 4A

Time: Saturday night 

It was the night of the boys' annual, D&D Christmas game. Lie Ren, as the DM, was getting the game set up while Jaune, Neptune, Oscar, and Yatsuhashi all gathered around, making sure their character sheets were up to date. After he finished setting up, Ren turned to Jaune and said, "All right, Jaune, to start our quest...you need to open this little Christmas gift I got you." Ren then grabbed a nearby Christmas stocking and handed it to Jaune. 

Jaune took the stocking, slightly offended by the gesture. "A Christmas gift? You know I don't enjoy Christmas." 

Ren and the others sighed, already annoyed with how Jaune was starting the game. They knew that Jaune was going to act this way but they were hoping he wouldn't start the game out like this.

Well, most of the room knew about Jaune's feelings towards Christmas. Yatsuhashi, confused, asked, "What's wrong with Christmas?"

Like a lightbulb, Jaune turned to Yatsu, already ready with his rant. "Oh, where to begin? Trees indoors. Overuse of the words 'tis' and 'twas'. And the absurd custom of one stocking! Everyone knows socks belong in pairs! Who uses one sock?!" 

"Uh...a pirate with a peg leg?" Neptune suggested as he continued working on his character sheet. 

"Actually that helps, thank you." 

Annoyed that Jaune was holding up the game, Ren groaned and pointed right at the stocking. "Would you just look inside already?" he said, exasperated. Jaune groaned, but relented. He stuck his hand inside the stocking, feeling around for Ren's gift. He then pulled out a sealed scroll (a paper one, mind you, not a phone), much to his pleasant surprise.

"Oh, a scroll!" Jaune said as he clutched the paper in his hands, "I like scrolls! They're my third favorite system of transmitting the written word! After stone tablets and skywriting!" Ren raised his eyebrows at what Jaune said, unsure what to make of it. 

After taking the seal off the scroll and opening it up to read, Jaune began reciting the words on the paper. The scroll read: 

**You have all been summoned to join a thrilling Dungeons & Dragons adventure. **

**Your quest begins in a secret northern village of elves, who have all been massacred.** (Jaune: *gasps* "I like where this is heading!")

 **Your task is to rescue their leader from a dungeon of ogres.** (Jaune: "Oh, that's a saucy twist.")

**That leader's name: Saint Ozma aka Ozpin Claus-**

"Oh, no, no, no!" 

Jaune stared at Ren, wanting an explanation for why the leader of the massacred elves was Ozpin Claus, the supposed jolly-old, coffee-drinking, silver-haired man who would deliver presents to all the good huntsmen and huntresses (as opposed to Salempus, who punished the misbehaving ones). Lie Ren just shrugged, not seeing the problem with the scenario he wrote.

"It's actually, 'ho, ho, ho', but you'll get the hang of it," Ren nonchalantly pointed out, "Look, I thought it'd be fun to make a quest with a holiday theme." 

"Fun?" Jaune said, sounding offended by what Ren just admitted, "Mixing Dungeons and Dragons with Christmas is like making a sandwich of grape jelly, the best-tasting jelly, and petroleum jelly, the worst-tasting jelly!" 

Jaune, after finishing his rant on the holiday-themed game, turned his attention down towards his character sheet. Unamused by Jaune's behavior, Ren decided to push forward knowing that there were three other men here who were eager to play.

"Okay, here we go," Ren said, trying to course correct, "You find yourselves in the smoking remains of Ozpin Claus' village. Clearly, a great battle has taken place."

Liking where this was going, Oscar said, "Oh, man, the first monster I see, I'm gonna sneak up behind him, whip out my wand, and shoot my magic all over his ass!" 

Yatsuhashi and Neptune couldn't help but facepalm at what Oscar just said. Even Ren, who was trying to remain neutral due to his role as the DM, stared at him, wondering if inviting Oscar to the game was a good idea. 

"Do you hear yourself when you say these things?" Yatsuhashi asked, causing Oscar to frown at him.

Ignoring Oscar's random outburst, Ren continued with setting up the story of this quest. "Okay, there are ogre tracks and a trail of broken candy canes in the snow. Jaune, what do you do?" 

Jaune put his pencil down, thinking over his options based on Ren's information. After thinking it through (not really though, as the group will learn shortly), he said to the group, "I signal my contempt for your cruel plan to shove Christmas joy down my throat by making a gesture that says 'hey, get a load of this guy'. Pffftt!"

Ren sighed. Part of him knew that Jaune was going to answer this way so it didn't surprise him. Moving on to the next player, Ren turned to Neptune and said, "Fine. Neptune, what do you do?"

Neptune, who was far more immersed in the story than Jaune was, leaned in to point at where the ogre tracks were on the board. "I follow the ogre tracks, checking for secret doors along the way-"

Ren rolled the dice to see if Neptune's move would succeed. After reading the number, Ren said, "And you discover a secret door leading to a dark corridor." 

Neptune smiled at that, feeling he had luck on his side for this game. Turning to Yatsuhashi, Oscar, and Jaune, Neptune said, "Okay, guys, let's make a plan. Spell casters in the back, warriors in the front-"

"-no, screw that noise, I'm going in!" Oscar shouted, cutting Neptune off. He then forcefully grabbed his piece and moved it forward, much to Neptune, Yatsuhashi, Jaune, and Ren's dismay. "Hang on, Ozpin, I'm coming for you!" 

Ren, already knowing that Oscar Pine's move would cost him, proceeded to read off Oscar's fate to the group. "Okay...you run into a room full of weapons...hit a trip wire-" Ren rolled the dice, then based on the number Oscar got - "a cannon blows your face off, you die, you're out of the game." 

Neptune sat back in his seat and threw his pencil onto the table, frustrated at Oscar's foolish move. 

Yatsuhashi just stared at Oscar, somehow feeling both bad for the man and angry at his impulsiveness.

Jaune just looked at Oscar, confused why he would even try to save Ozpin Claus in the first place. Also, he looked somewhat jealous at the guy.

Oscar...just stared at his character's piece, saddened that he was out already. "But...a cannon," he said, "Am I really out of the game?" 

Jaune nudged Oscar. "Lucky," he said, not making Oscar feel any better.

Ren, knowing they had a long way to go for this session, decided to move forward, even without Oscar. "Okay," he said, ignoring Oscar looking right at him, desperate to get back into the game, "Come on, moving on-"

"-wait!" Oscar shouted, "D-d-doesn't anyone have like a, uh, a rod of resurrection? Because if you've got one...I need it bad!"

Oscar looked around the room, hoping someone would save him. All he got were nods for no. 

"Get in here with your rod and give it to me!" Oscar whined. Neptune, Jaune, and Ren all cringed from Oscar's interesting choice of words. 

Yatsuhashi, turning to the man who clearly did not hear what he just said to the group, said, "Okay, you need to say these things in your head before you say them out loud." 

_Knock, knock, knock!_

The boys all turned to the front door after hearing the knocking. There, they saw Pyrrha Nikos, who looked like she was dressed for a night out in the town. "Hey guys," Pyrrha said, "I don't mean to interrupt your little game...but I thought you'd like to see what you're missing out on." 

Immediately, Oscar and Yatsuhashi looked confused while Ren, Jaune, and Neptune braced themselves. The three men were all thinking the same thing; _what are our girlfriends/wife up to now?_

Pyrrha cleared her throat as she entered the apartment. She pushed the front door wide open, then started playing fashion show runway music on her scroll (from a playlist conveniently titled 'stock fashion show music'). "First up...Yang?" 

At the mention of Yang's name, Yang entered the room as if she were a fashion model at a show. The boys' mouths dropped (especially Neptune's) when they saw that she was wearing a form-fitting red dress that let her show off a lot of leg and cleavage. Knowing that she was looking good and that everyone in the apartment was staring at her, she struck a pose by the boys. This instantly made Neptune wonder if he had made the wrong choice playing D&D on this particular Saturday night.

As Yang continued to flaunt her dress, Pyrrha began talking as if she were the MC to this night's events. "Yang's wearing leopard-print pumps and a rack-tastic red dress from Forever 21!" At that, Yang walked out of the room, followed shortly by Weiss.

Weiss was...oddly enough, wearing a dress that didn't seem all too different from her usual clothes. It was definitely a dress, but she wasn't being nowhere near as bold as Yang was. Unlike Yang, Weiss didn't look as comfortable strutting her stuff. She looked like she wanted to be anywhere but at the apartment. 

"And there's Weiss," Pyrrha continued, "showing all kinds of ankle. In an outfit I'm assuming is from Forever 63." Weiss then walked back to Yang, eager to step away from the spotlight. Pyrrha then stepped up, showing off the low-cut dress she was wearing.

"And I, myself, am wearing a little number that got me out of speeding tickets and jury duty." 

After Pyrrha's turn, Jaune turned to Ren, not sure what to make of the girls and their little fashion show. "I know they're making a rhetorical point," he said, "I just don't know what it is."

Pyrrha, slightly annoyed by what Jaune said, decided to make it clear what their point was. "See you boys," Pyrrha said, "We are going drinking." 

As the girls started leaving, Oscar immediately perked up, realizing this was his way out of the game. _Nothing I can do here anyways,_ Oscar thought, _especially after getting blown apart by Ozpin Claus-hating ogres._

"Uh, wait, can I come with you?" Oscar asked, catching the girls' attention, "My character died." 

The girls looked at each other, all with smug looks on their faces. They were all thinking the same thing; payback.

"Sorry Oscar, it's girls' night out," Yang said.

"Maybe another time," Weiss added. At that, Yang, Weiss, and Pyrrha left, closing the door behind them.

Ren sighed, wondering how many times this game of D&D would get side-tracked. "Okay," he said, "Let's get back to-"

The door suddenly opened again. Turning to the door, the boys saw Pyrrha with a big smile on her face. "Just kidding," she said, "Come on Oscar, let's go."

Oscar cheered, then jumped up on the sofa on his way to Pyrrha. "Woo! Girl's night! Girl's night! Ooh, ooh!" The rest of the boys watched as Oscar danced his way out of the apartment, closing the door behind him as he did. 

Yatsuhashi turned back to the group, a dull look on his face. "How does he not hear that?"

* * *

Setting: Junior Xiong's Nightclub

Due to the Christmas season and the fact that it was a Saturday night, Junior's nightclub was busier than usual. The bartenders (namely Melanie and Miltia Malachite) had their work cut out for them and scores of people were having a blast, drinking to their heart's content. The same could not be said for Yang, Weiss, Pyrrha, and Oscar's table. Despite having gone out to drink, they were more just hanging around the table, wondering how to spend the rest of the night...as well as if they should punish their men for leaving them out of D&D. Then there was the fact that Oscar was there, awkwardly being a part of "girls' night". Although they allowed him to attend, it was still strange to have him in their circle. 

"So, what's the plan?" Weiss asked, cutting to the chase, "Are we gonna teach our fellas a lesson by getting stinking drunk, luring strange men into the bathroom and turning the toilet stall into a temple of the senses?" 

Yang and Pyrrha stared at Weiss, wondering if she was already drunk. "No!" Yang and Pyrrha said at the same time.

Weiss frowned at being shot down. "Geez...who's Forever 63 now?" She then took a sip of her champagne, already bored with Yang and Pyrrha. 

Not wanting the night to end early, Oscar gestured to a nearby bar waitress (who suspiciously looked a lot like Melanie Malachite) and asked, "Can we get another bottle of champagne for the table?" Then, to the girls, he said, "Don't worry, it's my treat". He wasn't sure if that was the alcohol speaking or if he was just in a really good mood that night. Not that the girls cared, they were just happy Oscar offered to pay.

"Thanks!" Weiss said. 

"Wow," Pyrrha said, impressed by Oscar's offer, "You should come to girls' night more often. And not just because if you weren't here, this would be a can of Pabst."

"My pleasure," Oscar replied, "Nothing makes me happier than the chance to spoil a lady. Just ask my dog! My vet says if I give her any more foie gras, she's going to die of gout!" Pyrrha and Weiss looked uncomfortable at what Oscar said. For Weiss, it was the mention of a sick dog. For Pyrrha, it was the mention of foie gras. She hated foie gras with a passion.

Yang, on the other hand, felt touched by Oscar's gentleman behavior to the point that she wanted to give back to him. He was being so nice to them and asking for nothing in return. Speaking to Weiss and Pyrrha, Yang said, "Hey, let's help Oscar meet a girl tonight!"

Weiss and Pyrrha looked excited at the idea while Oscar, although he was smiling, politely declined. "No, no, no," he said, "I'm fine."

"Okay, wait, are we talking one night stand or do we want to get him into a relationship?" Pyrrha asked. 

Before anyone could give out a rational answer, Weiss blurted out, "Let's get him laid!" The champagne was really starting to get to her. 

Pyrrha and Yang stared at Weiss, wondering if they should stop her from drinking. Oscar, as if he could read Pyrrha and Yang's thoughts, said, "Stop it...you're ruining girls' night!" Weiss rolled her eyes at that...then took another sip of champagne. 

"Oscar, you're a great guy," Pyrrha said, "You're in a bar full of single women; let us help you!"

"Yeah, you're a real catch!" Yang chirped, "I know you're shy but that doesn't mean you shouldn't have someone wonderful in your life!"

Oscar blushed at that. "That's sweet of you. But what can you do to help?" 

Yang, looking around the club as she formulated a plan, said, "We'll nose around, see if we can find a nice girl, and then introduce you!"

Oscar, starting to get behind this plan, nodded his head. D&D definitely didn't work out for him but that didn't mean the night was completely lost! "Okay...okay! Well, a couple of things. Don't tell them I come from money. I want them to love me for me."

Yang, Weiss, and Pyrrha smiled at that, appreciating that Oscar wanted something more intimate and deep, rather than something superficial. But then, literally a second later-

"They must be insanely hot! Like...nines or tens!"

"Nines or tens?" Pyrrha dully repeated. Weiss and Yang both glared at him, not liking where he was going with this. 

"Okay, an eight is acceptable...if she's willing to bring another eight to the hot tub."

"Bottom line," Yang chimed in, "You'll take any woman who'll have you, right?"

"Oh absolutely, that's not even a question you needed to ask," Oscar said.

Yang, Weiss, and Pyrrha sighed, slightly annoyed by Oscar, but opted to let his antics slide for tonight.

* * *

Setting: Apartment 4A

Despite losing Oscar Pine, the Dungeons and Dragons game was still continuing, even as the boys struggle to deal with Jaune's disdain for Christmas. Looking closer at the figurines that Ren was using for the game, Yatsuhashi said, "I don't remember you buying these miniatures in my store". The store, which was co-owned by the other members of team CFVY, sold D&D merchandise as well. Yatsuhashi was proud of that fact due to being a veteran D&D player himself.

Ren faked a cough, embarrassed that Yatsuhashi pointed out that he didn't buy the figurines from the CFVY store. "Oh, uh...yeah. I got them on the S.D.C. website." 

Yatsuhashi put the figurine down, trying his best not to show that he was unhappy that his friends were not buying from his store. He wasn't succeeding. "Sure, I get it. Why support a friend when you can support a multinational conglomerate that is crushing the life out of that friend?"

Ren sighed, feeling bad for his friend but not wanting to hear his complaining at the same time. "I know, I know...but when I shop online, I can do it on the toilet." 

"Have you seen my store? The whole place is a toilet-"

"-can we please move this along," Neptune interrupted, causing Yatsuhashi to back down. 

Ren, going back into the game, said, "Right, sorry. Uh, you come to the end of the tunnel and find a large chest. What do you do? And Neptune, do not say 'I feel up the large chest'." Ren handed the figurine representing the large chest to Neptune. Neptune took the piece while rolling his eyes at Ren. He was married now, he was beyond making those kinds of jokes (although most of the group, including Yang, would disagree with him on this). 

"Excuse me," Neptune scoffed, "I'm a married man now. I wasn't going to say anything so juvenile." 

"Great, what do you do then?"

"I walk up to the large chest, and...bury my face in it and go _bpbpbpbpbpbpbpbp._ " The other boys groaned as Neptune made the motion of motorboating the "chest" that was in front of him. Neptune, even though he meant what he said earlier...he couldn't resist making the joke. Ren had practically set himself up for that one. _Yang would probably have laughed at that as well. Hopefully. Maybe. At least I think she would-_

Neptune's thoughts were interrupted when all of a sudden, Jaune moved his character forward. "I open the chest," he said, catching Ren by surprise.

"Oh, it's locked," Ren said, quickly going back into the game, "But suddenly, the door behind you slams shut and now the walls of the room start closing in." 

"That's not good," Yatsuhashi said, pondering how they were going to get out of this trap, "My character and I both have claustrophobia."

Ignoring Yatsuhashi, Ren continued with the details of the trap room. "Glowing letters appear on the chest that read, 'if squashed to death you wish not to be, sing of Ozvaty Ozclav and his victory'." 

"Wait, who the hell is Ozvaty Ozclav?" Neptune asked, genuinely confused. 

Ren didn't answer the question. "Walls are getting closer!"

Yatsuhashi took a deep breath, not wanting to imagine the walls in order to avoid triggering his claustrophobia. "Oh, boy, happy place, happy place..."

"Wait, Ozvaty Ozclav was the Duke of Mountain Glenn," Jaune interrupted, seemingly coming to the realization on the trap's secrets.

"You're ten seconds away from getting crushed!" Ren warned as Jaune continued to work out the chest's clue, "Nine, eight-"

Neptune groaned, frustrated that they were going nowhere with the one hint. "Man, what are we supposed to do?!"

"Seven, six-"

"Wait, wait," Jaune said. He had the look of a man who just solved a mystery. "Ozvaty Ozclav is better known as Good King Ozceslas from the beloved Great War-era Christmas carol." 

"Never heard of it," Neptune said, "Must have been the one Christmas carol not written by a Mistralian guy." 

Ren, although temporarily thrown off by what Neptune said, went back to his countdown. "...three, two-" 

"Somebody sing the damn song!" Yatsuhashi shouted as he imagined the walls crushing his body. Before Ren could reach one, Jaune stepped in and, much to the group's surprise, sang the song.

**♫ Good King Ozceslas looked out, on the feast of Stephen ♫**

**♫ When the snow lay 'round about, deep and crisp and even ♫**

Jaune turned to Ren, hoping it was enough. Ren, based on what he heard, said, "Okay...the walls are getting slower..."

**♫ Brightly shone the moon that night, though the frost was cru-eh-el ♫**

**♫ When a poor man came in sight, gath'ring winter fu-eh-el ♫**

The boys couldn't help but gawk at Jaune after he finished singing the carol of Good King Ozceslas. For a man who hated Christmas with a passion, he essentially saved the gang by singing a Christmas tune. 

Ren was the most surprised. Looking at the trap, he chuckled and said, "Wow, the walls stopped! You're safe!" Jaune smiled and updated his quest sheet with what just happened.

"That was amazing, Jaune!" Neptune said, still surprised at Jaune's sudden singing. 

"How did you know that?" Yatsuhashi asked.

Jaune scoffed. "It was simple," he said, "I combined a well-known historical fact about Mountain Glenn with the memory of my grandparents, Mee-Maw and Pop-Pop, singing Christmas carols while I sat in front of the fire and tried to build a high-energy particle accelerator out of Legos."

Ren nodded at that, accepting Jaune's explanation. It sounded in-character for him, so he chose not to question him. "Okay, continuing our quest," Ren said, looking back at the board.

"W-w-wait," Jaune suddenly interrupted, "There's still four more verses. You don't sing a song and not finish it." 

**♫ Hither, page, and stand by me, if thou know'st it telling ♫**

**♫ Yonder peasant, who is he? Where and what his dwelling? ♫**

**♫ Brightly shone the moon that night, through the frost... ♫**

As Jaune continued to sing the rest of the Good King Ozceslas carol, the boys couldn't help but feel they made a mistake praising him. Now, they were stuck having to listen to the whole song just to continue the game. It didn't help that the further Jaune sang, the more they began to realize they hated his singing. 

* * *

Setting: Junior Xiong's Nightclub

The night was still young and Oscar Pine was making the best of it as he was seen chatting it up with a pretty redhead girl at the bar (who suspiciously looked a lot like Octavia Ember). Yang, Pyrrha, and Weiss couldn't help but feel proud of what they did for the man. After he had treated them so well, helping him with his love life was the least they could do for him.

Yang turned to Pyrrha, a big grin on her face at a job well done. "Looks like he's doing pretty good," she said. 

Pyrrha nodded her head, as if it was obvious that he was going to succeed. "Of course he is," she said, "Look, that girl just got dumped by her boyfriend. She's angry, she's drunk and her favorite movie is Farm-Boy Millionaire."

Weiss cringed at that. "Wow...that...is some low-hanging fruit." Pyrrha rubbed the back of her head, feeling slightly guilty.

The girls then noticed that Oscar was headed back to their table. Octavia Ember wasn't with him but judging from the look on his face, things were going well for him. "Oh, here he comes," Yang said, wanting to hear the good news from their friend. 

"So, how'd it go?" Pyrrha asked.

Oscar placed his glass on the table, still looking confident. "It's great...I bought her a couple of drinks, and she gave me her e-mail address." 

Yang and Pyrrha cheered at that, considering the night a success for him. Just to prove he wasn't lying, Oscar lifted up a tiny piece of paper which Octavia apparently wrote on. Handing it to the girls, Yang eagerly grabbed it and began reading. Her face dropped as soon as she read the words out loud. "Octavia@not-even-if-you-were-the-last-guy-on-earth.loser."

Pyrrha and Weiss frowned while Oscar looked shocked. The girls guessed he didn't actually read the note when Octavia first gave it to him on his way back to the table. Oscar grabbed Octavia's note to make sure he wasn't being pranked. "What?!" he yelped as he re-read the harsh text.

"I'm sorry, Oscar," Yang said, patting the man on his arm to comfort him.

Oscar sighed, crumbling the note in his hand out of frustration. The night, which had started out awful after getting killed in D&D within the first few minutes, seemed to be going in his favor thanks to the girls setting him up with Octavia. Now, the night was back to being crap with this rejection. "Why can't I find someone?!" he said, exasperated at how awful his love life was, "I'm smart, I've got a cool job, and my naturally tanned complexion means I can pull off mustard yellow in a way most guys can't!" 

The girls all felt for the man (aside from the part about pulling off mustard yellow clothes). They all knew what it was like to be going through a dry spell when it came to romance. For Pyrrha, it was when she broke up with Jaune. For Yang, it was when she broke up with Blake. For Weiss, it was...Jaune once again with the break-up, but they got better. Then there was the time where she and Yatsuhashi were almost a thing before calling things off. So hearing Oscar complain about how crappy his love life was, they all felt a sort of kinship with him.

"Oh, honey, it's not you, it's them," Pyrrha said

"No, it's not," Oscar whined, "She was too beautiful for me."

"Why would you say that?!" Yang yelped, stunned at Oscar's low self-esteem.

"It's true...I'm always attracted to women I can't have! I do it all the time! I did the same thing with the two of you!"

Yang and Pyrrha looked away briefly, knowing what Oscar was referencing. There was a period of time, early on in their friendship, when Oscar tried to make passes at both of them. And then, there were...embarrassing moments that the three of them would like to forget. But still, for Pyrrha and Yang, it sucked being compared to the girl who had just rejected Oscar in the worst way possible. 

Weiss, however, turned to Oscar, confused. "The two of them?" she asked, "I don't understand." Yang and Pyrrha cringed; they had forgotten that Weiss wasn't part of their friend group during that specific point in time.

Oscar faked a cough, growing uncomfortable at having to explain this part of his history. "Well...uh...there was a time when I had a thing for Pyrrha...and I thought she was into me, too...because she got drunk and naked and climbed into bed with me. But apparently, I misread those signals." 

Pyrrha gritted her teeth, unsure if she wanted to kill Oscar for telling that story or Weiss for making him tell the story. 

"Um," Weiss said, surprised at Oscar's story, "And...you liked Yang also?"

"Oh, that was before Pyrrha. I make it a rule to only fall for one of my friends' girlfriends at a time. I'm very old-fashioned that way." 

"So...at, uh...some point...you probably had a thing for me, too." Weiss giggled after saying that. Yang and Pyrrha nearly facepalmed as Weiss started acting like her mother after a few glasses of wine. Oscar, on the other hand, just looked at Weiss, unsure what to think of her. 

"No, not really," Oscar said as he took a sip of champagne. Weiss stopped giggling, then glared at Oscar. For some reason, she hated the fact she was the only one of the three women in the group that Oscar didn't have a crush on. 

Pyrrha picked up on this as well. "Oh, come on, Oscar," she said, trying to take Weiss' side, "Not even a little bit?"

Oscar shrugged, making Weiss feel even worse. "Not that I can think of," he said as he took another sip of champagne. 

Yang was now glaring at the poor boy. "Think...harder," she said, her tone a mix of anger and threatening. 

Not picking up on any of the girls' hints, he shrugged. "Nope, sorry. I guess the heart wants what the heart wants! Or in this case, doesn't, I mean, at all."

After Oscar finished, he noticed that Yang and Pyrrha were glaring at him while Weiss just stared, disappointed. He knew he messed up somehow...he just didn't know when and how.

"What?" he said, sheepishly. He could've sworn he saw red in Yang's eyes as he looked over to her. 

* * *

Setting: Apartment 4A 

**♫ -Ye who now will bless the poor, shall yourselves find blehhhhhhhh-siiiiiiing ♫**

**♫ Ba-da-bum! ♫**

Neptune, Yatsuhashi, and Ren all breathed a collective sigh of relief as Jaune Arc finally finished singing the carol of Good King Ozceslas. It felt like they had been listening to him for an hour when it had only just been a few minutes. 

"Done?" Neptune asked, faintly masking his annoyance.

"I think the word you're looking for is 'bravo'," Jaune snapped back. 

Ren, wanting to finally get back to the game, opted not to comment on Jaune's singing, lest he suddenly come up with another five verses to the same carol. "Okay, you leave the room and find yourself standing before a pool of melted snowmen." 

"Melted snowmen?" Jaune scoffed, "Are there carrots and lumps of coal in the water?"

Ren shrugged, unsure where Jaune was going with this. "I don't know. What's the difference?"

Jaune turned to him, as if he was offended by his question. "It's a game of the imagination, Lie Ren! Paint a picture!"

"Fine...you leave the room and find yourself standing before a pool of melted snowmen. There are carrots and lumps of coal in the water." 

"What happened to the top hats and the corncob pipes?" Jaune added, irritating Ren even further. 

"You see those too!"

Jaune closed his eyes, visualizing the scene that Ren (and himself) had just laid out. "Oh...it's like I'm really there." He then stood up to stretch.

As Jaune did, Yatsuhashi looked over to the group. "I gotta tell you," he said with a big smile on his face, "This is the most holiday fun I've had since my...my therapist changed my anxiety medication and I stopped caring about the blood in my stool." 

Ren and Neptune frowned, not wanting to hear any more from Yatsuhashi. That was way too much information from them. In addition, they thought back to when Oscar was with the group and how he kept saying embarrassing things without noticing what he was saying. It was Yatsuhashi who kept telling Oscar to be more mindful of what he says out loud. Now, here was Yatsuhashi just casually talking about blood in his stool. 

Neptune shook his head, feeling that he could've gone his whole life without hearing that. "Good story," he said, his voice dripping with sarcasm. 

Jaune Arc returned to the group after his stretch. While Yatsuhashi was talking to the group about his fecal problems, Jaune had gone into the kitchen and got himself a drink. Curious about what Jaune was drinking, Ren asked, "What are you drinking there? A little eggnog?" 

"Yes," Jaune said, surprising Ren that he was right, "what, is there a problem-" 

"-no, it's just nice to see you enjoying a holiday beverage. Pretty Christmas-y." 

Jaune glared at Ren as he held his cup of eggnog close to his chest. It was clear he didn't like eggnog being connected with Christmas. "Since when is eggnog a Christmas drink?" he snapped at Ren, "Eggs are available all year round. I've been known to enjoy this poolside." Jaune took a sip of eggnog as Ren continued to wonder why he even bothered mentioning Christmas to Jaune, fully knowing that he would just get a rant in response. At this point, he was beyond fed up with Jaune's negative attitude towards the holidays and, by extension, the theme of this D&D session. 

"Come on, Jaune," Ren said, "You know all the Christmas stories, and the carols. You've got an eggnog mustache going on there. Just admit it. You're getting a little Yuletide spirit!"

"Oh, don't be silly. Christmas is a bunch of baloney, created by the tinsel industry. Why is this so important to you?"

Ren sighed, not wanting to go this route and bring the night down. However, since Jaune asked, he decided to answer. "Honestly, because I had enough crappy Christmases as a kid and I'm tired of you sucking the joy out of them now." 

At that, Jaune frowned. It looked like he was aware he hit Ren's nerve.

Yatsuhashi, feeling curious, looked over to Ren and asked, "What was so bad about them?" 

"I grew up in a house full of crazy academics. Instead of leaving Ozpin Claus milk and cookies, we had to leave him a research paper. And in the morning, you could tell he'd been there because the paper would be graded." 

Neptune and Yatsuhashi frowned, feeling sorry for Ren. Now they understood why he was so excited to have this D&D session be holiday-themed. On the other hand, Jaune was...smiling. "No wonder you love Christmas," he said to Ren, "That sounds amazing!"

"It wasn't amazing," Ren dully said, "I got a C-minus four years in a row."

"Yeah, I'm familiar with your work. C-minus was your gift." 

_Goddammit Jaune!_ Ren began rubbing his face with his hands, trying to calm himself down, while Jaune jotted down notes on his quest sheet. It seemed like forever since the boys had actually progressed in their quest for this game of D&D.

* * *

Setting: Junior Xiong's Nightclub

After getting chewed out by Yang and Pyrrha for not picking up on what he said about Weiss, Oscar was feeling extremely guilty. He didn't mean to insult her, he was just speaking what he was feeling. Still, part of him was wishing that he picked up on the girls' hints sooner. Especially when Yang started using her "don't-make-me-any-angrier-than-I-already-am" voice. 

"Weiss, I'm really sorry," Oscar said, "I didn't mean to upset you". Weiss looked away. She wasn't really hurt but still, she couldn't deny that she was annoyed at the fact that she was the only girl who Oscar didn't have a crush on. It made her want to compare herself to Yang and Pyrrha, which she hated doing, especially since she was the one in the dress that made her look like a boring plain jane. 

Weiss sighed, realizing she had to talk to Oscar, or else the night would get even more awkward. "It's fine," she said, "I know this is weird for me to say since I'm the 'rich girl' but...I'm used to being the girl who never gets looked at twice. I didn't have my first kiss till I was 22, and the guy only did it so I'd give him back his insulin."

Oscar, Yang, and Pyrrha cringed as they visualized a younger Weiss stealing some poor soul's medicine, all just for a kiss. "Sometimes," Yang said, "The pancreas wants what the pancreas wants."

Weiss sighed, wanting to move forward from this topic. "Forget it. I don't expect you guys to understand."

Before Yang and Pyrrha could chime in, Oscar turned to Weiss. Unlike those two...Oscar knew full well what Weiss was getting at. "I understand," he said, "In seventh grade, I played 'spin the bottle' and it landed on Nebula Violette. She said if I came near her, she would break the bottle and cut me."

"You think that's bad?" Weiss said, "In college, I passed out at a frat party...and woke up with more clothes on."

Oscar couldn't help but feel for Weiss. Just hearing her experiences, he was starting to feel a sort of connection with her. Meanwhile, Yang and Pyrrha stayed silent, realizing where this was going. Just from what they were seeing, Oscar and Weiss were having...'a moment'. 

"Sometimes, I get so lonely," Oscar said, "I sit on my left hand until it goes numb...then I put it in my right hand and pretend I'm holding hands with another person." 

"I do that, too," Weiss said, "Although, sometimes, the left hand tries to cop a feel...and I let it." 

And now, although Yang and Pyrrha were happy that Oscar and Weiss were bonding...they were starting to feel a little creeped out at where the conversation was going. 

Oscar didn't mind. He was happy that he was talking with someone who had similar experiences with him. It made him feel less lonely. "It's kind of nice to talk to someone who understands what it feels like to be alone." 

Weiss smiled at that, feeling a similar connection with Oscar. "It is, isn't it?"

"But...you're not alone anymore! Now you've got Jaune!" 

"I do. And don't worry, someday, you'll have somebody too!"

"Thank you...I hope she's half as lovely and amazing as you are." At that, Oscar patted Weiss on the shoulder. She smiled, no longer disappointed as being the girl looked over by Oscar. 

"Thank you, Oscar," Weiss said. Turning to Yang and Pyrrha, with a big grin on her face and the champagne still affecting her mood, she said, "He wants me, I'm good. We can go now!" Weiss then turned to leave, with Yang right behind her. She, too, was grinning, happy that Weiss was able to turn Oscar's opinion of her around. 

Oscar sighed, realizing what just happened. "Damn it," he said. Pyrrha Nikos, not sure why he was upset, turned to him and said, "What?"

"Now that I know she doesn't like me, I'm kind of into her." 

Pyrrha groaned as she and Oscar caught up with Yang and Weiss on their way out of the nightclub. She liked Oscar and all, but she had enough of dealing with his relationship issues for one night. 

* * *

Setting: Apartment 4A

"Alright...I think I cracked the code to lower the drawbridge," Jaune said as he finished writing the last set of digits on the whiteboard. Neptune and Yatsuhashi looked over to see what he had written. The whiteboard read:

**333 333 35123**

**444 4433 3554216**

"Okay, way to go, Jaune!" Neptune said as he grabbed a pair of bells. "Great, let's do it," Yatsuhashi added as he grabbed his bells and got into position. Ren watched, wondering if the boys could get his 'code' right. He was also mentally preparing himself for Jaune's inevitable rant about Christmas once he realizes what the code really was. 

Jaune grabbed his own bells, then stood next to Yatsuhashi. Neptune stood on the other side of Yatsuhashi. Looking at the board, the boys began chiming their bells, based on where they were standing. Yatsuhashi was first:

 **Ding ding ding** (Ren: "The drawbridge is lowering!") **, ding ding ding, ding dang dong di-ding**

(Yatsuhashi: "Argh...my carpal tunnel's acting up!" / Jaune: "Play through the pain!")

**Deng deng deng, deng deng ding ding, ding dang dang deng di-dong DEENG!**

Turning to Ren, the boys hoped that was enough to move forward in the quest. Lucky for them, Ren said, "You did it, the drawbridge is down!" The boys cheered as they made their way back to the table to move their pieces.

Continuing with the quest, Ren said, "You cross the chasm and find yourself in a small dungeon room. And in the corner, chained to the wall, you see a bloodied and beaten Ozpin Claus." At that, Ren pulled out an Ozpin Claus hat and placed it on his head, for dramatic effect. "He says, 'ho, ho...help me'."

Neptune couldn't help but laugh at that mental image. Still, he was glad that this quest was nearing its end, and that they were ending it on a high note. "Yes, we found Ozpin!" he cheered as he updated his quest sheet, "Christmas is saved!" Quickly realizing what he just said, Neptune quickly added, "Uh...guys, don't ever tell my mother I said that." 

Ren just shrugged, ignoring what Neptune just said.

Yatsuhashi leaned over to the table. He then gestured to his character and said, "I take out my skeleton key and run to Ozpin to unchain him." 

Suddenly, Jaune stood up, stopping Yatsuhashi in his tracks. Ren's eyes widened, unsure where Jaune was going this. The game should have been smooth sailing from this point. 

Jaune then pointed around the room, to all three men. "But first...I cast a spell of paralysis on Yatsuhashi and Neptune." 

Neptune frowned. "Wait, what are you doing-"

"-hey, hey, hey, you can't talk; you're paralyzed." Neptune, utterly confused by Jaune's behavior, decided to just play along and see where this was going. With Neptune and Yatsuhashi down, Jaune walked up to Ren, who still wasn't sure what to do. Jaune then said, "I get right up in Ozpin's big, gorgeous face and say...'well, well, well, jolly old Saint Ozma, we meet again. Yeah, I believe the last time we spoke was in the Dust-Town Mall in Kuchinashi, Mistral, when I was five years old, isn't that right?'" 

Ren, at this point, was beyond confused by Jaune's behavior. Since he was just done with him for tonight, all Ren could muster was a simple, "Uh...okay." 

"My mother dragged me there and she plopped me down on your lap and you asked me what I wanted for Christmas. And I told you, 'my Pop-Pop'. Because that was the year my grandfather died. I missed him and I wanted him back."

Neptune, Ren, and Yatsuhashi felt the mood of the room shift. Suddenly, all of Jaune's rants towards Christmas made sense. To Ren, he just thought Jaune was being a Grinch (a folktale about a Grimm that hated Christmas). Now knowing that his distaste for the holiday was related to the death of his grandfather, he couldn't help but feel guilty. He just wanted to spread some Christmas cheer, he didn't mean to bring up past memories of dead family members. Ren wanted to say something to Jaune, something to help him feel better about the holiday. Instead, because of how awkward the situation was, Ren could only think of one thing to say.

"This is weird, right?"

Neptune and Yatsuhashi, although they felt bad for Jaune, couldn't help but agree with Ren. 

Ignoring the three men, Jaune continued with his story (and his in-game conversation with Ozpin Claus). "Pop-Pop was the only one in my family who encouraged me to pursue science. But you didn't bring him back, did you? No, instead, I got Lincoln Logs. Well, you can build a lot of neat things out of Lincoln Logs...but Pop-Pop ain't one of them. And now you're here...asking me for something. To save you. Well...sorry, Mr. Reincarnation, but today's not your day. I'm leaving you here to rot, and I hope the ogres and Grimm feast on your bones." 

Finished with addressing Ozpin, Jaune turned to Ren, Neptune, and Yatsuhashi. He then said, "I take the skeleton key, and I toss it into the chasm, and on the way out, I give Ozpin a swift kick in his bowl full of jelly!"

Jaune then sat down, completely satisfied with the turn of events. All Neptune and Yatsuhashi could do was stare at the man, wondering if he had gone insane.

Ren, realizing the game had taken a sharp turn into madness, decided to just move forward in the game based on Jaune's moves. "Okay," he said, cautiously, "So just to recap, Neptune and Yatsuhashi are paralyzed, Ozpin's dead, and I picked this over having sex with my girlfriend!"

Lie Ren sat back in his seat, accepting the fact that the night was completely ruined. He tossed his Ozpin hat away as he began to wonder how he managed to convince himself in the first place that D&D with Jaune was somehow better than sex with Pyrrha. _Good lord, Ren...for an experimental physicist, you are an absolute moron._

* * *

Setting: Apartment 4A

Time: Late at night 

Jaune Arc woke up after hearing something coming from the living room. He got up and left his bedroom. He didn't bother turning the lights on, not wanting to give away his presence to whoever was intruding the apartment. As he looked around, his eyes widened when he saw who it was.

Wearing all red and white and with his trademark hat on, it was Ozpin Claus! He was standing by the Christmas tree, apparently laying down presents.

Jaune stepped closer to see if it was really him. "Ozpin?" Jaune asked. Ozpin turned and immediately, Jaune noticed his silver hair and glasses. _That's him, alright. Or at least...a very good cosplay of Ozpin Claus._

Ozpin turned to Jaune, surprised by his presence. "Oh, hello, Jaune!" he exclaimed, "You should be asleep!"

"Well, then, you shouldn't have jingle bells on your boots." 

Ozpin looked down at his feet. He groaned at the fact that they were ringing, although this made Jaune wonder why he was even wearing bells on his boots. 

"I've been wanting to talk to you," Ozpin continued, "I'm sorry I disappointed you when you were a little boy."

Jaune looked down, saddened by that.

"I-I can do a lot of magical things, but, unfortunately, bringing your Pop-Pop back isn't one of them."

"I understand," Jaune said. He figured that was the reason a while ago.

"But I-I do have something special for you! Close your eyes!" 

Excited at the idea of a gift coming directly from Ozpin Claus, Jaune closed his eyes and turned away. "Oh, I hope it's a train," he said out loud, hoping Ozpin would have one now that he mentioned it. 

"Oh, it's better than a train," Ozpin said as moved around the apartment's couch. 

"Two trains?"

"Better!" 

"I'm getting three trains!" 

"Okay...open them!"

Excited, Jaune opened his eyes...only to see Ozpin holding a lit torch in the middle of their room. And by his side was, much to Jaune's horror, an actual cannon. 

Now, Ozpin dropped his smile. He was now full-on angry with Jaune. "THIS IS FOR LEAVING ME IN THE DUNGEON TO BE EATEN ALIVE BY OGRES!"

"Whoa, whoa, wait! Uh, uh, hang on! I-in my defense-"

"HO, HO, HO...YA BIG DORK!"

Suddenly, Ozpin lit the cannon. It fired, sending a cannonball right at Jaune's face-

/

/

/

-Jaune woke up, sweating from his nightmare. After making sure a cannonball didn't actually hit him in real life, he lied back down in his bed to try to go back to sleep. He could've sworn he heard bells jingling as he tried to wipe out the memory of Ozpin Claus violently murdering him with a cannon. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Based on: "The Santa Simulation" (The Big Bang Theory, season 6, episode 11)
> 
> Happy Nondescript Winter Holiday to everyone! Hope y'all are doing good and staying safe, especially during this time. 
> 
> I dedicate this chapter to ArkosLover07, who suggested that I adapt an episode of Big Bang Theory for this fic. They even provided the cast for this write-up. Now, I'm not a huge watcher of TBBT (I've never watched a full episode before writing this chapter) but, in the spirit of nondescript winter holiday, I decided to give it a shot. Hopefully it turned out well!


	31. Nondescript Holiday Spectacular 2020: Yippie Kayak

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sun, Neptune and Weiss head to a store to buy late Christmas gifts. However, the store turns out to be the center of the robbery, prompting Sun to have his "Die Hard moment." Meanwhile, Blake joins Ironwood and Yang on their Polar Club swim while on low degrees. Also, Taiyang heads the hostage situation while having problems with "Doctor Evil", Arthur Watts.
> 
> (PART 2 OF THE NONDESCRIPT HOLIDAY SPECTACULAR 2020)

Setting: City of Vale Police Department

Time: Christmas season

Christmas fever had fully set in with the Vale City Police Department. Christmas decorations could be seen hung throughout the entire department, even in places that didn't seem appropriate. Although the people in the holding cells didn't mind, they were at least happy to see some holiday cheer, despite their current predicament. 

As the staff went about their day, Detective Blake Belladonna, who was sitting by her table waiting for Captain James Ironwood to arrive, noticed that fellow detective (and, recently, boyfriend) Sun Wukong had just entered the room. Since it was Christmas, she was waiting for the captain to arrive to give him a gift. Although everyone in the department was well aware that he had a "no gift" policy, this year, Blake had a plan. A plan so clever that even the notoriously difficult Ironwood couldn't resist it. 

Thinking that it wouldn't hurt to tell Sun what she was doing, she waved over at the monkey faunus. "Ooh, Sun, come here!" Blake said, "Come here, come here, come here! You got to see this!"

Sun, curious, immediately walked over and took a seat. With a big grin on her face, she turned to Sun and leaned in, just to make sure no one else in the room could hear her and accidentally give away what she was doing. "I'm about to give Captain Ironwood his gift," Blake said to Sun. Sun, fully aware of the hardened captain's views on gifts, just stared at Blake, surprised his girlfriend was going through with this. 

"Oh, really?" Sun asked, "Did he lift his 'no gift' policy?"

"No, he didn't...but I figured out a way to buy him something and trick him into accepting it." Blake smiled deviously. One way or the other, she was finally going to get Ironwood to enjoy himself during the winter season. Sun couldn't help but smile at Blake, impressed that she was going out of her way to do this. Although he knew it was probably not going to work, he had to give her props for attempting this so-called plan of hers.

"You are bad," Sun joked.

Blake snickered at that. "I know, right?" But then, literally as soon as she said that, she realized that Sun was just joking with her. "Oh, wait...you're making fun of me, aren't you?"

"Mm-hmm." Sun said as he nodded his head. He didn't want to tear Blake down, in fact, he thought it was cute that she believed she could pull one over Ironwood. However, he also couldn't find it in himself to pretend that her plan had a chance at succeeding.

Blake pouted at Sun. She hoped he would be more supportive, especially considering that they were together and that he himself had put Ironwood through so much crap during his time in Vale PD. "Well, I don't care," Blake scoffed, "Just hear me out, okay? Now, he would never open a gift, right? But...what if his gift didn't look like a gift?" 

Sun's eyes shot up, seeing what Blake was getting at. "He...would open it?"

"Exactly! I left it in a cardboard box on his desk. There's no card, just the words 'open now', which I wrote with my wrong hand so he wouldn't recognize my handwriting."

Blake sat back in her seat, proud of what she had come up with. Even though she knew James Ironwood was this elite captain who could sense bullshit from a mile away thanks to his career in the Atlesian military, Blake was confident he wouldn't suspect anything from her plan. He was human, not a machine. 

Sun didn't say anything...but deep down, he was pretty sure Blake was in for a rude awakening. Something about Blake's plan was bothering him...he just couldn't figure out what it was exactly. 

Just then, Captain James Ironwood entered the room. Blake smiled as he walked by them, not because she was happy to see him (well, she was, that just wasn't the main reason), but because she timed his arrival.

"Captain!" Blake said to Ironwood as he walked by. 

Ironwood briefly turned to his two detectives and nodded his head at them. "Belladonna, Wukong," he said.

"Sir," Sun said. 

As Ironwood left their sight, Sun turned to Blake. As he recounted in his head what Blake's plan was, he suddenly realized there was a glaring error that she didn't consider. _Oh god, Blake...you didn't think this part through, did you?_ "So, just to recap," Sun said, keeping his eyes towards Ironwood's room, waiting for his inevitable, horrified reaction to Blake's gift, "You left an unmarked package on a police captain's desk on a random Monday, with a suspicious message written on it that looked like it was scrawled by a crazy person."

Blake shrugged, not understanding what Sun was getting at. "Uh, yeah, what's the-"

"Bomb!" Ironwood shouted. Immediately, Blake's face fell as the entire police department turned to Ironwood, surprised at what he just said. Ironwood stormed into the room, angry at what he just saw planted in his office. "There's a bomb! Everyone out! Let's go, let's go! This is not a drill! Let's go!"

It didn't take long for the department to react. As soon as Ironwood told the group to evacuate the premises, Yang and Weiss ran out of the building without looking back. Neptune hit the fire alarm while Taiyang accidentally dropped his cup of coffee as he ran outside. 

Blake wanted to hide. Her cat ears drooped as she looked around at her co-workers, panicking at the supposed bomb threat. 

Sun, although he felt sorry for his girlfriend, couldn't help but turn to her with a look that screamed 'I-told-you-so'. "Great gift, babe!" he shouted over the fire alarms. He then shot up a thumbs up at her, causing her to cover her face with her hands. There was no way she was ever going to live this down. 

* * *

** "VALE NINE-NINE" **

**STARRING**

**SUN WUKONG**

**(counterpart: Jake Peralta)**

**(Sun is seen staring at an action figure of a Vale police officer)**

**YANG XIAO LONG**

**(counterpart: Rosa Diaz)**

**(Yang is seen smacking a computer, trying to get it to work)**

**TAIYANG XIAO LONG**

**(counterpart: Terry Jeffords)**

**(Taiyang is seen angrily yelling into a phone)**

**BLAKE BELLADONNA**

**(counterpart: Amy Santiago)**

**(Blake is seen pretending to shoot at a wall with finger guns)**

**NEPTUNE VASILIAS**

**(counterpart: Charles Boyle)**

**(Neptune is seen stepping backwards, suddenly in pain)**

**WEISS SCHNEE**

**(counterpart: Gina Linetti)**

**(Weiss is seen doing a little dance with her scroll in hand)**

**JAMES IRONWOOD**

**(counterpart: Raymond Holt)**

**(Ironwood is seen sitting down with a logo of the police department behind him)**

**/**

**/**

**/**

**Co-starring**

**ARTHUR WATTS**

**(counterpart: Detective Keith Pembroke/"The Vulture")**

**RAVEN BRANWEN**

**(counterpart: Sharon Jeffords)**

**QROW BRANWEN**

**(counterpart: Zeke)**

**SCARLET DAVID**

**(counterpart: Norm Scully)**

**SAGE AYANA**

**(counterpart: Michael Hitchcock)**

**FOX ALISTAIR**

**(counterpart: Store employee)**

**ASHER MORA**

**(counterpart: Matt, the robber)**

**PYKE RITE**

**(counterpart: The robbers' leader)**

* * *

Setting: City of Vale Police Department

"Ho, ho, ho, Sun!" 

Sun Wukong turned in his seat when he heard the familiar voice of Neptune Vasilias call his name. Like the rest of the department, Neptune was taking part in the celebration of the holidays; he had on his Santa hat and he was even holding a gift bag. Although who the bag was for, Sun wasn't sure. 

Neptune stopped in his tracks and held the bag out for him. Sun, surprised that the gift was for him, leaned back in his seat to hear from Neptune who decided to honor him with a Christmas present before Christmas day.

"Special delivery from Santa's elf," Neptune said, a big stupid, goofy grin on his face, "Merry Christmas!" 

_Well...he didn't tell me who but...hey, free gift! And hey, it's coming from my bro, so I can't reject it._ Without thinking too much about it, Sun stood up from his seat and grabbed the gift from Neptune. Opening it, Sun couldn't help but gasp when he recognized what the gift was. Reaching in, he pulled out the soda bottle and held it up to Neptune for him to see.

"Heart attack soda," Neptune said, nodding his head.

"Holy crap, I love this stuff!" Sun happily said. It was true, he loved his rare, novelty soda, especially when they came from Vacuo (he claims that his home nation's loose regulations on food and drink allowed companies to make their junk food taste better, at the cost of the people's health). "You know, technically, it's just carbonated fudge."

"I know!"

"I thought they banned it!" 

Neptune shook his head at that. "Not in Mistral. They use it to induce labor in goats." Sun, although he was happy to have a bottle of this banned soda, couldn't help but think that he could've gone his whole life without that goat fact. As Sun looked down at the bottle to read all the fine details, Neptune added, "And your real present arrives tomorrow." 

Sun couldn't help but feel honored. _Well...that's Neptune. Even if he could be a bit weird and awkward at times, deep down, he's a true bro._ "There's more?" Sun asked, "Neptune, come on, this is too much." 

Neptune waved his hand at that. "Nonsense! It was just a lot of time and a lot of money!"

"Oh? Okay." 

Neptune walked away, flashing him a thumbs up. Sun, meanwhile, couldn't tell if Neptune was lying or telling the truth when it came to how troublesome it was in buying the soda. Confused, Sun placed his gift down on his desk.

As he looked at the rare, extremely-hard-to-get soda bottle on his table, Sun began to wonder about how he was going to pay Neptune back. He knew that he had to do something, especially when the blue-haired man went out of his way to get him this gift. Hell, even Blake, his actual girlfriend, probably wouldn't go as all-out and crazy with her gift as Neptune just did. As he continued looking at the bottle, he also began to realize that Christmas was coming up soon, meaning he was running out of time to buy Neptune a gift. _Oh great, of course I would wait this long to get my bro a gift. Come on, Sun, think! What would Neptune like as a present, that would cost a lot of money and take a lot of time to get? Think, think, think-_

Weiss Schnee walked by Sun, interrupting his thoughts. Remembering how close Weiss was to Neptune, Sun walked over to her to ask for advice. "Weiss!" Sun said, getting the white-haired woman to stop and turn to him. "I screwed up. I forgot to get Neptune anything."

Weiss shrugged, then took a sip of tea from the mug she was holding. "Oh, well, I always knew he would die of sadness," she said bluntly, catching Sun off-guard. 

"I'm such a selfish jerk! I was just so focused on Blake's gift that I completely spaced. Man, his present to me was so personal. All right, no time to complain, I need to think. What does Neptune love? Gross food, tan pants, 'MasterChef Junior'. Ooh, I could call up one of those kids and offer them a free trip to Vale City!"

Weiss narrowed her eyes at Sun, already recognizing the dangers of an adult man calling children and promising them a free trip to a city so they could service another adult man. "Sun...I wouldn't do that." 

"Right...because I'm a stranger, and I shouldn't be luring them out of state. Good call-"

"-Sun, just go to Coco Adel's. They're open late, and they have everything." 

Sun nodded his head, liking Weiss' suggestion. If they truly had 'everything', then he was sure to find at least one thing that could match Neptune's extravagant gift to him. "Right, that's smart. Weiss, please come with me. Please, I need help picking something out. Please, Weiss?" 

Weiss rolled her eyes, annoyed at Sun's request. It's not that she didn't want to help with Neptune's gift...she just wasn't in the mood.

Seeing that she was not cooperating, Sun looked around the room for a way to entice her to come with him to Coco Adel's. After a quick scan, his eyes landed on Detective Sergeant Taiyang Xiao Long, who was at his desk typing away his latest arrest report. Seeing an opportunity, Sun turned back to Weiss. "Okay, how's this," he said, "I'll take a pic of Taiyang in the locker room for you." 

_I know you like those muscles, Schnee. Don't lie to me!_

Without hesitation, Weiss said, "No towel, with his foot up on the bench."

 _Oh come on, be reasonable here! I can't pull that miracle off!_ "Uh...towel on, still wet from the shower." 

Weiss, after a few seconds of imagining a shirtless Taiyang just coming out of a hot shower, nodded her head. "I'm in."

/

/

Taiyang Xiao Long just finished typing up his arrest report, which took him most of yesterday and a few hours from today. _Brothers, I am never doing another shift with Marrow Amin, this is just too much for one report. I need a shower-_

Tai stopped when he saw that Weiss and Sun were staring at him. Sun had a huge smile on his face while Weiss was just staring at him. She had the same look that Raven Branwen had when she was undressing him in her mind. 

"Uh," Tai said, confused at his co-workers' stares, "Hey guys, what's up?"

"Nothing", Weiss and Sun said, simultaneously. Confusing Tai even further, both Sun and Weiss shook hands with each other...as they continued staring at him.

_What the hell? Oh, it's too early in the day for this crap..._

* * *

Setting: Vale PD, employee lounge area 

Yang Xiao Long just finished making herself a cup of coffee when Captain James Ironwood entered the room, still looking as stiff and annoyed as he always has been. Immediately, Yang realized why he was here. She sighed as she walked over to where Blake Belladonna was sitting.

"Xiao Long, are we still on for the Polar Bear Swim tonight?" Ironwood asked. 

_Yup, there it is. Of course that's why he's here. Doesn't he have anyone else to accompany him?_ "Well," Yang started, "It's either that or go caroling with my family, so, yeah."

Although she didn't mind caroling with her half-sister Ruby Rose...she really didn't want to spend her night making sure that her uncle Qrow didn't get arrested for public drunkenness. And then there were the inevitable fights between him and Raven Branwen, Qrow's wife Summer Rose trying to get the two siblings to stop fighting, then Raven bringing up how Qrow had an affair with Weiss' sister Winter Schnee which always escalated the family arguments, which would then lead to Ruby crying about how toxic their family was. And then there were the other, toxic members of the Branwen Tribe, such as their Aunt Vernal wanting to talk about Vale politics, their uncle Shay D. Mann wanting to talk about how faunus girls were better lovers than human girls, then-

"I'd rather walk into the freezing ocean," Yang said as she sipped her coffee, trying to erase the memory of how terrible her family gatherings usually became. Even her father, Taiyang, would agree with her. 

Blake Belladonna, who wasn't aware that Yang and Ironwood were doing the polar swim, couldn't help but feel left out. She had heard about this event from her other co-workers but she never had a chance to actually attend, especially since she usually didn't know anyone from the precinct taking part in the swim. "Wait, what?" Blake said as she pushed her tuna salad away from her, "You guys are doing the polar swim? Why didn't you ask me?"

Ironwood and Yang looked at each other, then shrugged. "Oh, we didn't think you'd be interested," Ironwood said.

"Yeah, you're always cold," Yang added, "You brought a blanket to the Vytal Festival in mid-July."

Blake scoffed at both of them. _Oh come on, I'm not ALWAYS cold! I can handle it!_ "This one thinks July 18th is mid-July," Blake joked. She chuckled to herself...then realized that Ironwood and Yang weren't laughing with her. As she looked at their blank stares and recalled what they just said about her, Blake suddenly realized why they didn't even consider including her in the polar swim. "You guys think I'm some kind of wimp, but I'm not! I am tough, and I'm strong...and I love to splash around in chilly water." 

Ironwood was less than impressed by what Blake said. He had the face of someone who knew that the person in front of them didn't know what they were signing themselves up for. "It's not chilly, it's as cold as the waters of Cocytus, the frozen lake of hell."

Blake scoffed again, wanting to prove herself to Ironwood and Yang. If anything, she wanted to knock their skeptical looks off their faces. "I'll see you there! I can't wait to dunk my junk."

 _Okay...that sounded cooler in my head._ Blake started cringing when she saw Ironwood visibly roll his eyes in disgust and Yang staring at her, looking equally repulsed. She could've sworn that she saw Yang shake her head in disappointment. 

* * *

Setting: Main area, Taiyang's desk

With his report done, Taiyang stood up from his seat and grabbed his jacket. He was done for the day, which meant going home and relaxing. He needed it after the beast of a report he had to type earlier. Plus there was another reason why he wanted to get out of the precinct as soon as possible; two-day, paid time off due to the holidays.

"Okay gang," he said with a yawn, "I'm out. I'll be back on the 27th. I've got two days of family time. Do not attempt to contact me. I do not want a repeat of last year when Scarlet David called me 50 times on Christmas morning." 

Offended, the patrol officer turned to him. "No," Scarlet whined, "I called you once! My butt called the other 49."

Tai sighed, not accepting that excuse from the patrolman. "Yeah, well, my brother-in-law Qrow was real judgy about how much my phone was buzzing." 

/

/

_Setting: Taiyang's home_

_Time: Last Christmas..._

_It was Christmas morning and Tai and Raven watched as their two youngest kids, Lindsay and Barbara Xiao Long, opened their gifts by the Christmas tree. Yang, their eldest, was in the kitchen, eating her food. As the two kids gawked at the presents they received this year, Tai's scroll suddenly started buzzing. Raven frowned, unhappy that even during Christmas, Tai was still getting calls from the office._

_Tai, trying to ignore the call, looked away from his scroll. Suddenly, Qrow Branwen arrived and picked the scroll up. Just like Raven, he was unhappy with his brother-in-law._

_"Somebody's got a lot of business to tend to," he said to Tai. Leaning down to Tai so he could be at face-level with him, Qrow then said, "Who are you? Adam Taurus?"_

_Tai sighed as he made a mental note to kill whoever it was that was calling him this Christmas morning._

/

/

"He didn't even make me one of the good fangs!" Tai whined to the whole department, "I'm clearly Sienna Khan! Now...once again...nobody call me!" At that, Taiyang turned to leave the department. Sun, Neptune, Weiss, Blake, and Yang, who had all been watching his rant, all nodded their heads at him. They all agreed that the man deserved a break. 

* * *

Time: Few seconds after Taiyang exited the station...

"Weiss!"

Weiss Schnee rolled her eyes when she heard Neptune Vasilias call her name. She stopped in her tracks as the blue-haired man walked up to her. Realizing she couldn't walk around him, she turned to Neptune, wondering what he wanted. 

"It's our first annual Vasilias-Schnee Christmas," Neptune said excitedly, "Are you excited about going to town on Daddy's nog?"

Weiss groaned at that. _God, we only slept with each other a few times, get over it._ "Christmas is cancelled," Weiss deadpanned, "Neptune ruined it. Also, I'm gonna be a little late. I got to help Sun do some shopping." Weiss could've sworn that she saw Sun look up from his desk and wink at her when she mentioned they were going shopping. 

Weiss then tried walking away. Much to her annoyance, Neptune followed her, walking backwards and keeping his eyes on Weiss the whole time. Weiss stopped again, this time by Sun's desk. She didn't want Neptune following her, so she turned to him wondering what else he wanted.

"Oh, last-minute gifts," Neptune said, curious, "Ooh...who didn't make the cut?" Turning to his best friend, Neptune said to Sun, "Tell me, Sun, who's the poor sack at the bottom of your list?" 

Sun stood up, hating that he was in this situation. He knew that he couldn't just admit that he forgot to get Neptune a gift, so...he had to lie his way out of this. Playing it off as cool as he could, Sun said, "Actually...it's Blake." Sun could see Weiss almost roll her eyes, as if she didn't expect Neptune to buy that obvious lie. 

Turns out, not only did Neptune buy the lie, he was visibly shocked. As if this was the worst thing he had heard today.

"Blake?!" he whisper-shouted to avoid attracting attention, "Oof! That's bad, bro."

"Mm-hmm, yeah."

"You know what...just give her whatever you got me."

Sun's eyes widened at that. _Is he...actually giving me an out so I don't have to get him a gift?_ "Really, Neptune? But then I wouldn't have a gift for you. Would you be cool with that?"

Neptune, after thinking it through, shook his head. "No, that would eviscerate me."

 _Damn it...so close!_ Just as Sun was about to say to Neptune that he'll find Blake a gift, Neptune said, "I'll get my coat. I'm gonna help you find something for her". He then turned to leave Sun and Weiss.

"Oh, that's not necessary!" Sun said, immediately panicking. "Wait, Neptune, you don't have to-"

"-buh, buh, buh, buh, Sun!" Neptune interrupted. Awkwardly, Neptune grabbed Sun's face with both of his hands, as if he was trying to calm Sun down. Sun, however, hated how awkward this position was.

"Also not necessary to touch my face," Sun said.

Letting go of Sun's face, Neptune said, "It's Christmas. A time for friendship!" He then walked away, happy at the idea of helping his bro find a gift for Blake.

As soon as Neptune was out of sight, Sun dropped the fake smile he was putting on for Neptune. Now, he was stressed out. The shopping trip was supposed to be for Neptune. It definitely defeated the purpose if Neptune was with them, helping them shop for his own gift. "Damn it," Sun muttered, "All right. I guess you'll just have to distract him when we get to the store."

Weiss nodded her head, already ahead of Sun. "On it. I'll take him to housewares and I'll ask him the difference between a skillet and a frying pan. That'll buy you six hours."

"Perfect! Weiss...you just saved Christmas."

"It's what. I. Do. Every. Damn. Year."

* * *

Setting: Coco Adel's, the store 

Time: Night 

"Good night." "Good night!"

The store was closing and Fox Alistair, one of Coco Adel's employees, was getting ready to close up shop. He sighed in relief as he said his goodbye to a customer leaving with their purchases. The reason was, as soon as that customer left, the minute turned, signaling that it was officially closing time. _Brothers, I hate Christmas season. I could be home playing "Duty of the Call: Noir Missions - Icy Conflict" right now. I should ask Coco for a raise the next time I see her._ As Fox closed the main door to close for the night, he groaned when he saw three people coming up to the door. _Sorry folks, we're closed and I have a date with my PS5!_

Those three people - Sun Wukong, Neptune Vasilias, and Weiss Schnee - were too late as the door closed on their faces. Looking directly at the store employee, Sun shouted, "Wait! No, no, no, no, no! Don't lock the door! I just need to buy one thing. I'll be so fast, I won't even pay!" 

Unsurprisingly, Fox locked the doors and walked away, not even acknowledging what Sun said.

"How did that not work?" Sun whined. Weiss looked away, resisting the urge to tell him he was being a dolt. Meanwhile, Neptune looked into the store and noticed something peculiar.

"Hey," Neptune said, "There's still people in there! They're not closed!" 

Weiss rolled her eyes at that. "First time at a retail store, Oliver Twist?" she snarked, "They lock the doors but if you're still inside, you get an extra 15 minutes to finish up."

"Oh, perfect," Sun interrupted, "So we should just try and sneak in an entrance through the back. Vasilias, you'll have to stay here. It's too dangerous."

Offended, Neptune turned to Sun, wanting to know why he was being left out. "Hey! No way I let you take that risk alone!"

 _Well...should've seen that coming._ "Damn it, you are loyal."

"Shall we?" 

There was no need to answer. Immediately, Sun and Neptune ran for the back of Coco Adel's. Weiss followed the two of them, wondering if all of this tomfoolery was worth the picture of a shirtless Taiyang.

At the back of Coco Adel's, Sun, Neptune, and Weiss approached the entrance meant for customers who only wanted to pick up their items after ordering them online. After making sure the coast was clear, Sun opened the door and all three Vale PD officers stepped inside. Neptune closed the door behind him after one last scan of the area. 

/

/

A few minutes later...

/

/

Just like how Sun and Weiss planned, Sun was off on his own while Weiss was keeping Neptune distracted. She tried her best not to look bored as Neptune was going through with his kitchen supplies demonstration. "Whereas, with the skillet," he said as he moved onto a skillet that was for sale, "the approach to fish skin is completely different."

"Mm-hmm," Weiss dully muttered, trying her best to fake interest in Neptune's demonstration.

"And your spatula technique is completely intuitive."

"Please, tell me more." _Oh Brothers, please DON'T tell me more._

Before Neptune could move onto his next item, much to Weiss' relief, Sun showed up with a gift bag in his hand. "Okay, I got it!" he said, triumphantly, "They're closing, let's go-"

Suddenly, Neptune grabbed the bag from Sun's hands, curious about what the man bought for Blake. Sun and Weiss' faces immediately dropped. "Oh, let's take a peep at that purchase," Neptune said as he pulled the gift out. Sun gritted his teeth as he wondered if his plan was completely ruined now. 

"Oh, cologne?" Neptune said, astonished. He then stared at Sun, wondering why he bought Blake something that was meant for men. 

"Uh...no, it's perfume," Sun lied, "For a lady. Woman."

"It's called 'Canyon Stank'. It's got a man riding a burro on it." Neptune then held up the box of cologne to Sun and Weiss to show them what he was talking about. 

"Oh, does it?" Sun lied again. He leaned in, pretending as if this was the first time he had seen the box art. "I didn't notice! I just like the way it smelled."

"Uh...I wear this cologne, Sun. I'm a Stank man."

 _Shit, shit, SHIT! Come on, Sun, LIE YOUR WAY OUT OF THIS!_ "Um...I don't know, maybe just subconsciously...I wanted Blake to smell more like you."

Sun was mentally facepalming himself. Weiss, on the other hand, didn't know whether she wanted to laugh at Sun or to kill herself because of how embarrassing the situation was. Neptune...just stared at Sun, confused.

"Okay, little creepy there, bud," Neptune said as he put the cologne back in the bag, "Coming on real strong."

"Wow, the tables have really turned," Weiss said, trying to play along with Neptune. 

As the three finished talking, they suddenly heard the sound of glass breaking coming from down the aisle. Turning their attention to where the sound was, they suddenly saw a masked man holding one of the store employees captive. The man had a gun on him and had it aimed right at the employee's chest. "Shut up!" the masked man shouted, "Keep walking!"

Immediately, Sun recognized what was happening. "Shoot!" he shouted, "The store is being robbed! Come here!" Sun then hid behind a shelf, then motioned for Weiss and Neptune to hide with him. The two immediately did, making sure that they were behind Sun. Sun kept his eyes on the robber, wondering what he was planning on doing next. 

Just then, another robber stepped up to one of the store's various surveillance cameras. With a can of spray paint, he stepped up on a nearby table, then sprayed the lens of the camera. 

"All right," Sun said, "Just slowly back up. There's a door behind us. We just have to get outside and call the Nine-Nine." Weiss and Neptune nodded their heads at that, agreeing with Sun's plans. The three turned around and headed for the door.

As the three snuck their way through the aisles, they heard the robbers talk amongst themselves. "Hey!" one robber shouted, "Just head for the vault. We're good." Although that gave the trio some hope they wouldn't come across one of the robbers (the vault was on the other side of the store), the lights were suddenly cut out, covering the three of them in darkness. Then, just to make matters worse, they heard another robber shout, "Lock 'em up!"

Turning the corner, the trio saw another robber lock the back entrance. Sun cursed, realizing they were trapped in Coco Adel's now. "They're sealing all the exits," Sun whispered, "Oh my God. It's real life 'Die Hard'." 

Sun smiled. This situation was EXACTLY like the movie 'Die Hard': Christmas season, off-duty cops as the heroes, armed robbers holding a bunch of people hostage. He couldn't help but feel overjoyed that he was living out one of his favorite movies. Turning to Weiss and Neptune, he saw they were less than pleased with him making light of their situation. Backpedaling, Sun said, "I mean...'oh no, it's crime'."

* * *

**COMMERCIAL BREAK**

_"Rooster Teeth Pictures" presents... (suddenly, the Rooster Teeth logo turns green and digitized before cutting out)_

Jaune Arc is then seen running across a rooftop. At the end of roof, he jumps off the ledge...then somehow manages to leap over the street and land on the building across from him, defying the laws of physics. 

We then cut to Neopolitan, who is also on a rooftop. She has only one thing to say: **"Whoa."**

(Apparently, this is a dimension where she can speak)

Cut to another building. It's raining heavily. This building turns out to be Neopolitan's apartment. She's fast asleep by her computer. She's wearing a giant pair of headphones that are blasting music into her ears. Just then, we hear Roman Torchwick's voice, talking to her. "Have you ever had a dream, Neo, that you were so sure was real?"

Suddenly, we're treated to a series of out-of-context clips that indicate there is something wrong with Neopolitan's world. In one clip, she's naked and is being hoisted up by a giant claw. In another, her mouth is somehow disappearing, preventing her from speaking. In another, she is falling straight down. It looks like she was on the roof of a skyscraper in that last clip.

Finally, we cut to Roman himself. He is wearing a trenchcoat and a pair of sunglasses, despite it being night in the window behind him. Suddenly, we cut to Roman and Neopolitan in another room. Neo reaches out to a mirror and, somehow, the mirror has a liquid texture when she touches it. Roman watches as Neo's hand starts getting covered by the strange, liquid-mirror substance.

"What if you were unable to wake from that dream?" Roman asks Neopolitan as she stares at her fingers, "How would you know the difference between the dream world...and the real world?"

Cut to black. Neopolitan then asks, "What is happening to me?"

When we cut back, Neopolitan and Jaune Arc are at some nightclub. Jaune leans in to Neo's ear and says, "The answer is out there, Neo. It's the question that drives us."

From there, Neopolitan gets a strange vision of green symbols that doesn't mean a thing to her at that moment. She also sees a man sitting in front of several monitors, one of which is displaying those same green symbols. 

Neo, realizing what Jaune is referring to, whispers, "What is the Matrix?"

**FORGET EVERYTHING YOU KNOW**

Roman says, "The Matrix is the world that has been pulled over your eyes. To blind you from the truth" As he says that, a clip of the city of Vale is shown, indicating that this is all part of the "Matrix". Neo, who is in the city, just looks around her, amazed at the fact that she is inside the Matrix and, despite knowing it was all fake, the city still felt real to her. 

She then sees visions of the "real world": A dark, desolate wasteland that was ruled over by the Machines. Humans and faunus are now being grown by these machines, their bodies being used by the machines as an energy source.

"What truth?" Neopolitan asks Roman. 

"They're watching you, Neo," Jaune says. 

Suddenly, we cut to the "Specialists", the programs developed by the Machines to oversee the Matrix. The Specialists are Specialist Winter Schnee, Specialist Clover Ebi, and Specialist Elm Ederne. Specialist Schnee is the head of the trio. Back in the rooftops from the first clip, Specialist Ebi is seen jumping from the ledge and landing on the building where Jaune had landed earlier, somehow also able to do the impossible, physics-defying leap. 

**FORGET EVERYTHING YOU'VE SEEN**

Winter Schnee says, "Human beings are a disease. You are a cancer to this planet. And we...are the cure."

As she says that, we see a clip of the same nightclub where Neopolitan and Jaune were. The ravers are going mad, unaware that they were all puppets to the Machines. We then cut to a hallway where Winter, Clover, and Elm are standing. They are seen in the green code of the Matrix, revealing their artificial nature. All three specialists are then seen firing at something from down the hallway. 

Winter's specialist abilities are then put on full display. She is seen rising up from the ground in an unnatural manner. Then, during a fistfight with Neopolitan, she punches a stone pillar, crushing it with ease. 

Neopolitan, at some point after the fistfight, is seen running away from the scene. With a scroll in her hand, she frantically screams "Get me the hell out of here!" 

Suddenly, Neo gets a series of visions. The visions are going too fast, overwhelming her mind. She then wakes up in some sort of seat. She's completely bald and she's panicking from her experience inside the Matrix. Jaune and Yang Xiao Long, who are by her side, attempt to hold her down and calm her.

We then cut to Roman. Speaking directly to Neopolitan, he says, "Welcome...to the real world." 

We then cut to a quick montage of Neo slowly gaining strength and becoming more comfortable with the Matrix. She is then seen armed to the teeth, with several belts of various guns strapped around her body. 

Emerald Sustrai, who is sitting by the computer monitors in the real world, scoffs at Neo and says, "So you're here to save the world?"

Cut to a different point in time. The group's resident hacker, Ruby Rose, is seen by the computer monitors. She asks, "So what do you need?"

Inside the Construct (a training program used by the humans), Neopolitan says to Ruby, "Guns...lots of guns." Ruby inputs a series of codes, then Neopolitan and Jaune suddenly find themselves in an aisle of weaponry. The aisle stretched out for many miles. 

"No one has ever done anything like this," Jaune says to Neopolitan as she starts going through the weapons.

"That's why it's going to work," Neopolitan says as she inspects a submachine gun. 

Cut to another room. Emerald, who is seen talking to Neopolitan, says, "Buckle your seatbelts, Dorothy. Because Kansas...is going bye-bye." 

The music swells as we get a glimpse of all the action scenes to come:

  * Neopolitan and Jaune Arc are seen standing on top of an elevator. Neo and Jaune grab ahold of one of the cables before Neo shoots at the base connecting it to the elevator. The elevator drops down to the bottom floor while Neo and Jaune are shot upwards due to the cable losing the weight it was attached to. As the elevator hits the lobby floor, in slow-motion, it suddenly explodes, covering the entire ground floor in fire and debris. 
  * A team of SWAT officers open fire on Jaune Arc. However, defying gravity, he evades all of their gunfire by running alongside the wall, then flipping to safety behind a pillar. 
  * Back with the fistfight between Winter Schnee and Neopolitan, Winter chucks Neo into a wall. Neo hits the wall, leaving a crater on impact. 
  * During the battle with the SWAT officers, Neo pulls out two submachine guns and opens fire on the officers. 
  * Jaune Arc is seen tossing a knife at a SWAT officer
  * In some building shaft, Specialist Winter Schnee punches through the wall and attempts to grab Neopolitan, who was on the other side. 
  * Emerald Sustrai is seen firing a laser gun at something. 
  * On a rooftop, Neo dramatically turns around and pulls out two handguns. She opens fire at Specialist Elm Ederne, who uses super-speed to dodge each bullet. 
  * Jaune Arc is seen surrounded by police officers. He then leaps up, then kicks the officer in front of him, sending the officer flying across the room. 
  * Neopolitan wakes up in a pod of red-and-purple goo. She is inside one of the pods that the machines use to grow human beings and faunus. 
  * Jaune Arc runs into a telephone booth, just as a garbage truck rams into it. 
  * A subway train is coming towards Winter and Neopolitan. Neopolitan makes an impossible leap to get out of the train's way while Winter tries to grab Neo. 



STARRING

NEOPOLITAN (Neo is seen in a helicopter, manning a minigun. She is then seen knocking a SWAT officer out with a swift kick to the head) 

ROMAN TORCHWICK (Roman makes a leap out of a hole in a skyscraper. As he's jumping through the air, Neopolitan jumps out of the helicopter she was in and manages to catch him) 

JAUNE ARC (Jaune is seen crashing through a window. He rolls down a set of stairs, then pulls out a pair of pistols aimed towards where the window was. He is then seen passionately kissing Neopolitan)

Neopolitan is then seen holding onto Roman. They are miles above the ground, with Neo being strapped to the helicopter. 

During the fistfight between Winter and Neo, Winter has Neopolitan in her grip. To break the grip. Neo suddenly shoots them both upwards. They crash on the ceiling, forcing Winter off of her. 

The helicopter that Neopolitan, Jaune, and Roman were using crashes into another building. As it crashes, the walls ripple like water, highlighting the artificial nature of the Matrix. Suddenly, the helicopter explodes. As the building is incased in fire, Jaune is seen swinging away from the explosion. 

Cut to black. Suddenly, we hear Roman say, "Unfortunately...no one can be told what the Matrix is. You have to see it for yourself."

As he says that, we cut back to Elm Ederne, who managed to dodge Neopolitan's bullets. She then pulls her own gun out and fires at Neo. Neo, once again defying the laws of physics, bends backwards, avoiding all the incoming gunshots. In addition, since this is all in slow-motion, she is avoiding the gunshots with reflexes that match the specialists' super-speed.

**(END COMMERCIAL BREAK)**

* * *

Setting: Coco Adel's 

The robbers had managed to gather the remaining customers and staff into one area of the store. After observing their movements, Sun turned to Weiss and Neptune and whispered, "They've taken all the security guards. Now, I left my gun in my locker. Are you carrying?" 

Neptune, who was trying to call for help on his scroll, shook his head. "No, mine's at work. Vasilias Christmas charades can get pretty competitive and it's best not to have firearms around." Weiss rolled her eyes at that as she thought to herself that no one would be serious enough to pull a gun out during charades. 

"We don't need guns," Weiss interrupted, "I have a lighter, okay? We get some hairspray, make some flamethrowers. Let's fry these bitches!"

"Wait, no one is frying any bitches," Sun said, "Now, Neptune, did you call this into dispatch?"

"Yes, but I can't get in touch with anyone from the Nine-Nine," Neptune groaned. 

Sun nodded at that, suddenly remembering where each of his co-workers were during this time. "Right...Blake, Yang, and Ironwood are having the time of their lives splashing around in the freezing, filthy ocean. I'll try Taiyang." Sun then reached into his pocket and pulled out his scroll, praying to the God of Animals that he wouldn't be too pissed at a call during this hour. 

/

/

Setting: Taiyang's home

The Xiao Long and Branwen families (sans Yang) were enjoying their family dinner. The table was covered with food, and there was even an oven-roasted turkey at the center. The family were all holding hands as Taiyang led them in blessing the food. 

"Thank you for this amazing year," Tai said, his eyes closed, "Thank you for the food in front of us. And my family-"

_BRRRIINNNNNG, BRRRIINNNNNG, BRRRIINNNNNG_

Tai frowned when he heard his scroll go off. Immediately, everyone around the table (namely Raven and Qrow) began staring at him, disappointed that his co-workers were calling him again.

Feeling the stares in the room, Tai tried his best to push on with the prayer. "And my family, which is my number one priority. Much more than...scrolls."

Tai couldn't help it. He peeked at his phone, wondering who it was that was calling him. He felt a pang of fury when he saw that it was 'Chattering Monkey Boy' aka Sun Wukong. 

Qrow sighed, not even bothering to hide his irritation. "Just take the call, Adam Taurus," he snarked. Taiyang frowned at his brother-in-law. Then, reluctantly, he stood up from the table and answered the call. 

"This better be an emergency," Taiyang growled as he walked away from his family, "There better be a gun to your head!" 

/

/

 _Well...uh...Tai, hate to break this to you but...yeah, I kinda do have one._ "Neptune, Weiss, and I are in a hostage situation," Sun whispered on his scroll. The trio then crawled their way around some computer displays in order to get a better look at the robbers.

/

/

Taiyang grimaced, realizing his poor choice of words. "Oh, Brothers, I shouldn't have said the gun thing. Taiyang regrets the way he answered the phone." 

_Damn it, there Taiyang goes again, referring to himself in the third person. Wait...damn it!_

/

/

"We're at Coco Adel's. There are multiple gunmen. They've blocked all the exits, they've taken the security guards hostage, and we're looking for a place to hide."

As Sun said that, Neptune leaned over a desk, hoping that the robbers couldn't see him. Down the aisle, he could see one of the armed robbers. Luckily, the robber was oblivious to the three police officers' presence. 

"It's awesome, by the way," Sun added. Weiss and Neptune immediately snapped their heads to him, unhappy he was back to his 'Die Hard' fantasy. Sun sheepishly smiled back at the two of them.

/

/

"It's awesome!?" Taiyang yelled, confused as to why the monkey faunus was making light of his situation. 

/

/

"Uh...awesomely serious," Sun said, quickly backpedaling, "I am not enjoying this, no matter how much it is 100% my favorite movie come to life." 

_I can't help it, I love me some Spruce Willis._

/

/

Taiyang groaned. This was so on brand for Sun that his behavior didn't even faze him anymore at this point. "Look, the important thing is keeping Weiss safe! You have a civilian with you. I'm on the way."

/

/

"Cool. Oh! By the way, also bring a pic of yourself in a towel coming out of the shower. Can't explain why, okay? Gotta go, bye."

Sun immediately hung up, hoping Tai would just follow along what he said. Meanwhile, Weiss smiled at him, liking that he remembered their deal, even during this situation. 

With Taiyang on his way, the trio moved again, hoping to find a spot to wait for the cavalry to arrive. 

/

/

 _What...the...hell?_ Tai didn't know what to think of Sun's last request before he hung up. However, knowing there was a hostage situation happening right now, he opted to ignore what Sun said and began getting ready to head out to Coco Adel's.

"There's a serious situation going down, they need my help with," Tai said to his family. Qrow Branwen, with a skeptical look on his face, turned to his brother-in-law. 

"Did one of your detectives lose his head up his own butt?' Qrow snarked at Tai. He then chuckled at his own joke.

After all the insults thrown his way...somehow, this was the last straw for Tai. Before he realized he was yelling, Tai shouted, "You don't even have a job, Qrow! You know what...I'm not supposed to be bringing this up, but I'm bringing it up! I'm sick of hearing you got things brewing! You ask me, the only thing you got brewing is a pot of BS! And probably, some alcohol you're gonna drown yourself in!" 

_Okay, that may have been a little too much. Let's tone things down._ With a softer voice, Tai turned to Lindsay and Barbara and said, "Kids, I love you!"

He then saw that his wife Raven was staring at him. Based on her stare, he wasn't sure if she was mad at him or just disappointed. Either way, she was not happy with him. "Uh...Raven, you are perfect in every way."

Then, turning to Qrow, his anger came back in full force. "Qrow, get a job!" 

At that, Taiyang turned to leave for Coco Adel's. As he did, Qrow awkwardly went back to eating his food while Raven just shook her head, wondering what got into her husband.

Although she did admit to herself that seeing him tense and angry was a little hot.

* * *

Setting: Coco Adel's

Sun, Neptune, and Weiss managed to make their way to the Christmas section of the store. There were several plastic Christmas trees around them, statues of nutcrackers, and a chair where the mall Santa would sit. When the trio heard the robbers barking orders at their hostages, the three quickly made their way to the Santa chair. They sighed in relief when they saw that the area was empty.

"Okay, we should be safe in here," Sun said, confidently, "This place looks good."

"Good?" Neptune said as he took a seat on the Santa chair, "It's better than good...it's great! Look, it's Santa's chair!" Once again, Weiss resisted the urge to facepalm herself out of annoyance from Neptune's behavior. 

Ignoring Neptune, Sun whispered, "All right, ESU's on their way. Our top priority is keeping Weiss safe." 

"Keeping me safe?" Weiss whispered back, sounding a little offended at the idea that she needed protection, "I'm gonna help you take these guys down!" She then brought back her original idea of the hairspray-flamethrowers by pretending to light Neptune on fire with one. 

Sun sighed, shooting the idea down once again. Before he could say anything, Neptune stepped in and said, "No, you're not doing anything like that. You're not a cop!"

"I've watched what you do for six years," Weiss snarked back at Neptune, "It's not that difficult. 'Vale PD, you're under arrest'. See, I can do it too!" She then blew a raspberry at both boys, annoying both of them. 

"Okay, first of all," Sun said, trying his best not to get angry at Weiss, "That was clearly an impression of Neptune. Second, stay here with him while I do some recon." Sun then made a move back to the main part of the store. To help him move easier, he took his jacket off and left it next to Weiss.

Although he sounded serious to both Weiss and Neptune...secretly, he was planning on indulging himself with his 'Die Hard' fantasy scenario. He was already thinking of all the cool one-liners he could say if he were to get into a fight with the robbers. 

As he prepared to leave, Neptune stood up from his seat, concerned for his friend and recognizing that Sun's plan didn't feel right with him. "Wait, shouldn't we all stick together?"

"Someone has to assess the situation, Vasilias," Sun said, trying his best to sound serious (and, in no way, trying to sound like Spruce Willis). "Plus, we're trapped, on Christmas, with a bunch of bad guys who are very likely Menagerian. This...is my John McClane moment."

Neptune sighed as Sun was full-on immersed in his 'Die Hard' fantasy. Knowing that he couldn't talk his friend out of this, no matter how stupid he was being, he decided to at least help his bro with his fantasy. It was the least he could do for a bro. "Okay...but you're gonna need a tank top. You can have mine." Neptune then prepared to take his shirt off to lend Sun the tank top he was wearing underneath.

Sun, seeing Neptune undress before him, immediately cringed. "No need! I snagged this on the way here!" He then triumphantly held up the tank top he had snatched while he was sneaking around the store.

Weiss, looking at the top, couldn't help but laugh at the design. It had a zebra-like color scheme to it and, in shiny, blue letters, the words 'Baby Grrl' were written on the center of the shirt. "Sun, you're aware that top has 'Baby Grrl' written on it, right?" Weiss said. 

Sun shrugged. "Yeah, they didn't have the best selection. I'll probably just skip the tank. I mean...I don't have to match the movie perfectly." Sun then tossed the tank top to Neptune, who caught it. 

"Yeah, good call."

"Anyways, I will return!" Before Weiss and Neptune could wish him luck, Sun ran out, back into the store.

Now alone, Neptune looked at Weiss. "Okay," Neptune said, "Weiss." He then tossed the tank top at her, hoping she would catch it, the same way he caught the tank top when Sun tossed it to him.

Instead, the tank top hit Weiss in the face. As it slipped to the ground, Weiss just glared at Neptune, wondering why the hell he tossed the shirt at her without warning. 

* * *

Setting: Vale City beach 

The beach was crowded as several Vale residents prepared themselves for the polar swim. Ironwood, Yang, and Blake were ready, just waiting for the call to start. Although she was trying to put on a brave face for both Yang and Ironwood, Blake couldn't help but shiver from the cold. Much to Blake's dismay, her shivering wasn't lost on Yang.

"You all right?" Yang asked, "You look pretty cold."

"I'm n-n-n-not!" Blake lied, "I'm actually h-h-h-hot! Hot and ready to get this super fun thing over with."

An air horn suddenly went off and, like a switch turning a light on, the beachgoers cheered and rushed towards the open water. As Blake prepared to take off her robe, Ironwood held out three flasks, one for each of them. "First," he said, "A toast!"

Blake sighed in relief and immediately grabbed one of the flasks, a bit too eagerly. "Great," she said as she unscrewed the cap, "Let's drag this out."

"To the sea."

"To the sea! Hear, hear!" She then took a big sip of booze, much to Ironwood's dismay. 

"Wait, I wasn't done," Ironwood said.

"Chill, Blake, let him finish his ocean toast," Yang said, now even more skeptical of Blake's claims that she was ready for the polar swim. 

"Thank you, Yang. Now, I'm reminded of a beloved Christmas Carol by Atlesian poet Fiona Thyme. 'In the bleak mid-winter, frosty wind made moan, Remnant stood hard as iron, water like a stone'." 

Blake heard enough. It was bad enough that she was about to jump into the freezing ocean. Now, just hearing a poem with references to ice and the cold just made things worse. "Moan, stone, phone," Blake stuttered as she held out her flask, "We get it! Now, down the hatch! Let's get this over with." 

Ironwood and Yang's eyes widened as Blake essentially chugged most of the flask. As the alcohol kicked in, Blake dropped the flask and started rushing towards the ocean. She was hoping that the warmth of the inevitable buzz would help her survive the waters. 

Blake cheered as she neared the water. Yang and Ironwood, despite their concerns for the detective's well-being, shrugged and followed her into the water. 

It didn't take much for Blake to immediately run back to the beach. She only made it three steps into the water before she turned around. "Noooooooooooo!" she screamed as she ran past Ironwood and Yang, "Oh my Gooooooddd-"

* * *

Setting: Coco Adel's (outside the store)

When word got out that Coco Adel's had been taken over by a gang of armed robbers, it didn't take long for the entire street to be surrounded by Vale PD. SWAT teams were already making a perimeter and patrolmen were urging nearby civilians to stay away from the scene. 

Taiyang had arrived shortly after receiving the call from Sun. He stepped out of his car, then approached a nearby SWAT officer to to get a better understanding of the situation. "Excuse me," Taiyang said, getting the SWAT officer's attention, "Sergeant Xiao Long with the Nine-Nine. I've got two detectives and a civilian in there. Who's in charge?"

"I am, ding-dong."

Taiyang groaned as he turned around, immediately recognizing the voice. He didn't even hide his frown when he saw that it was Detective Arthur Watts, aka the resident asshole of the Vale police department. Watts was holding a cup of coffee and was wearing body armor.

"Oh...Doctor Evil," Taiyang growled. Arthur didn't even flinch at his nickname. Although his co-workers at the department started calling him that as an insult, he ended up loving that name, much to everyone's dismay. Now, everyone regretted calling him 'Doctor Evil' since, every chance he got, he would ask to be referred by that name. 

"That's right. It's me. In the flesh." 

Taiyang walked up to Watts. Although he hated the man's guts, right now, they were on the same side. He gritted his teeth, knowing that he needed to cooperate with this man for at least tonight. 

"Happy Faunus Equality Day," Watts snarked as he walked away from Taiyang.

Taiyang, although he was pretty sure he was just insulted, wasn't sure what he meant by that. "Hey, dude, I'm not a faunus-hang on, did you just say that because I'm blonde? Dude, just because I'm blonde doesn't mean I'm related to Sun Wukong-"

Just then, Taiyang realized he was holding Watts' coffee cup, which was empty. Without him noticing it, Watts had slipped his cup into Tai's hands before he walked away. Angry that he had somehow been played, Tai chucked the cup to the ground.

* * *

Setting: Coco Adel's (inside the store)

Just a few minutes after leaving Weiss and Neptune, Sun snuck his way around the store in his attempt to live out his 'Die Hard' fantasy. He had made his way to the makeup section. Grabbing a nearby mirror, Sun hid behind a counter. "All right," he whispered to himself, "Let's see what we're dealing with." Raising the mirror, he saw that a robber was trying to bust open one of the store's cash registers.

"Hmm," Sun muttered to himself, "I'll call you...Klaus." Just to make sure he remembered, Sun took out a pen that he grabbed while sneaking around the store and wrote the name on his left wrist. 

/

/

In the jewelry section of the store, Sun spotted another robber. This one was smashing his way into a jewelry case and grabbing all the items inside.

"You will be...Guenter. With the little dots over the U."

Just like with "Klaus", Sun wrote "Guenter's" name on his wrist. 

/

/

In the eyeglasses section of the store, Sun spotted another robber. This one was just staring at the various glasses and sunglasses on display. 

"Jurgen!" Sun whispered happily as he wrote the goon's name on his wrist. 

Suddenly, Sun heard the goon's walkie-talkie go off. "Hey, Asher Mora," the voice on the walkie-talkie said, "Are you in position?"

"I'm here," ~~Jurgen~~ Asher responded.

Sun groaned, briefly taken out of his action movie fantasy scenario. "Oh, great...the bad guy's name is Asher." He then crossed the name out and wrote Asher instead,

/

/

Making his way back to Neptune and Weiss, Sun saw that the two of them were just sitting down by the Santa chair, looking bored as hell. 

"Hey, sorry that took so long," Sun said, "Weiss, you doing okay? You scared?"

Weiss frowned at him, not liking what he was implying. "I'm scared...that you won't let me make a flamethrower...and use it to throw flame."

"You're right. I will not do that. You're gonna stay here and keep hiding. Vasilias and I are gonna handle this. Here's the situation: 12 terrorists, 1 cop. Just the way he likes it-"

"-huh, who's he?" Neptune interrupted.

"Me!"

"Why are you calling yourself 'he'?"

"Because that's the tagline from the 'Die Hard' poster...and also my high school yearbook quote." 

"Oh, I knew I recognized it! Next time, lead with that."

"Right. Sorry. Also, there aren't 12 of them. There are seven, and they're not terrorists, they're robbers. They brought drilling equipment to break into the safe."

"Okay...so...it's really seven robbers, two cops, and one Weiss." 

"Yes, exactly."

"Yeah, okay, got it!"

"Hey...where's Weiss?"

Sun and Neptune turned to where Weiss was sitting...and saw that she was no longer there. Immediately, Sun and Neptune stood up, fearing the worst for their co-worker. But as they worried that she had somehow been captured by the robbers, Sun suddenly remembered what Weiss kept going on about. He then dragged Neptune with him on his way to the hair products section of the store.

After making their way through several Christmas trees and other Christmas decorations, Sun spotted Weiss. "There she is," Sun whispered to Neptune, "She went for the hairspray." He resisted the urge to facepalm when he saw that Weiss wasn't even trying to sneak her way back to the Christmas section. Her arms were full with cans of hairspray as she was practically jogging her way back. 

Neptune, although he was unhappy with Weiss' actions, couldn't help but be impressed with her insistence on the homemade flamethrowers. "She is incorrigible," he muttered. 

Things were going a bit...too smoothly. Although there was no one in the area, Sun couldn't help but feel that this was the part of 'Die Hard' where the heroes hit a snag in their plans-

"Who are you?! COME HERE!" 

Weiss stopped in her tracks when one of the robbers suddenly revealed himself and blocked her path. As Weiss tried to make a run for it, another robber ambushed her from behind. She dropped the cans of hairspray as she was taken hostage by the robbers.

Sun and Neptune could only watch, dismayed by their co-worker's capture. Sun cursed silently, thinking that he jinxed Weiss. They wanted to help but there was nothing they could do. Not unless they wanted to get shot.

"No, no, no, no," Neptune whispered, panicking as the robbers dragged Weiss away, "Sun, they're taking Weiss!"

"Yeah, I know! We're looking at the same thing!"

* * *

Setting: Coco Adel's (outside the store)

"WHAT, THEY GOT WEISS?!"

Taiyang could hardly believe what he was listening to. When Sun and Neptune had called him, he was expecting them to just say that they had found a place to hide in the store. He was not expecting to hear that they lost Weiss. "I TOLD YOU TO WATCH HER!"

/

/

"I know," Sun said, trying his best to calm the sergeant down. Neptune, who was sitting in the Santa chair, was barely holding it together as he wondered what the robbers were doing with poor Weiss.

"I am so sorry, but I promise you, we will get her back," Sun continued. 

/

/

"Oh, this is bad," Taiyang groaned as he watched the SWAT teams preparing to storm the building. And leading the charge was Arthur Watts, who still was acting like a douchebag to his fellow officers, despite the situation they were in. "Sun, I got to report this to Doctor Evil. He's in charge." 

/

/

 _NO. NO, NO, NO!_ Sun cursed as soon as he heard that Watts was the head of the operation. Although it fit with the 'Die Hard' narrative (the head of the police team was a douchebag who seemed to be working against the heroes), he hated this part of the movie. 

"Ugh!" he shouted, "Doctor Evil? I thought he was on his massage tour of Vacuo!"

/

/

"Uh, he's actually leaving tomorrow. That's why he wants this over quickly."

Taiyang groaned. He hated that that was Watts' actual explanation to him for why he was being more irritating than usual. 

"Just to let you know, he wants to storm the building."

/

/

"No! No, no, no, that is a bad idea! Look, we still haven't figured out where they're holding Weiss and the rest of the hostages. If you guys come busting in here, things could go sideways real fast."

/

/

"That's what I told him, but then he just repeated it back to me in a lady's voice."

/

/

"Listen to me, Sarge. Vasilias and I can take these guys out one by one and no one will get hurt. Just ask Doctor Evil to give me some more time. He'll be reasonable."

_Wait...hang on, Sun, what did you just say? Arthur Watts...being reasonable?_

"What am I talking about, it's Doctor Evil. Uh...tell him...Veronica Vodka's doing a free show in Central Park." 

/

/

Taiyang, taking Sun's suggestion, walked up to Arthur Watts and told him exactly what Sun told him to say. Watts was...less than impressed.

"Then how come," Watts said, frowning at Tai, "Veronica just posted a selfie from the Baby Stone show in Wind Path, bro? Yeah, I follow her on social media. You know what? I know what's going on here. Sun wants to go solo and he's trying to steal my thunder!"

_Arthur Watts...I swear, I would kick you in the nuts, but I'd be out of a job if I did._

"He's inside and he has eyes on the situation," Taiyang said.

"Look, I'm in command here! Look around you! I control all of this! You see that guy behind you? That sniper? He'll shoot whoever I tell him to...even you."

"No, I won't," the sniper quickly interrupted. He then walked away, annoyed that he was even dragged into the conversation.

"Fine," Watts said, trying to recover, "Then, uh, he'll sit on any rooftop I tell him to. Hey, go sit on that rooftop, guy!" The sniper who attempted to walk away groaned, having heard Watts' order at him. He then made his way to the random roof he had been told to sit on. 

"Look, just give Sun a chance," Tai pleaded, "If he fails, then you can storm the building."

"I'll give him a chance to sit on his little monkey butt and wait for me to come rescue him. You tell him that I'm Friam Kneeson...and he's my hot, dumb daughter."

Tai just sighed. He wasn't sure what he was more annoyed at; Watts' insistence on storming the building or the fact that he was referencing the extremely overrated 'Taken' movies.

/

/

Realizing that Taiyang's chances at convincing Watts to stand down was little-to-none, Sun turned to Neptune, hoping to hatch up a plan to stop the robbers themselves. "All right," he said, "We're outnumbered and unarmed. If we're gonna get Weiss back, we need weapons. This place sells hammers, wrenches-"

"-do they sell plants?" Neptune interrupted, "Because some of that potting soil is very toxic if ingested in large quantities."

"So...you want to feed the bad guys a lot of soil?"

"Force feed them!"

"Okay, that's a good option...that I will definitely consider." _No, I will not._ "Now, let's go out there and gear our asses up!"

Then, at the same time, they both whispered to each other, "Quietly!"

[Both men moved out, preparing for war with the robbers.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ADgCeYJMN4&ab_channel=OnyxVEVO) However, both were preparing differently.

Sun grabbed a curtain rod from the bedroom area.

Neptune, for some reason, grabbed a pair of tongs from the outdoor grilling area.

In the sporting goods section, Sun grabbed an inflatable floater.

In the men's shoes section, Neptune grabbed a pair of wood-and-metal shoe stretchers.

Lastly, Sun grabbed a leg from one of the store mannequins. Then, just for dramatic flair, both Sun and Neptune put on bonnets from the winter clothes section. Now...it was showtime. 

/

/

"Klaus" was roaming the aisles when, all of a sudden, a mannequin head rolled out in front of him. He leaned down to pick it up. That was when he noticed that there was writing on the head, scribbled in lipstick.

"Ho ho ho?" he muttered to himself.

Suddenly... _smack!_

"Klaus" didn't even see it coming. Running in from one of the aisles, Sun Wukong rushed the robber and caught him in the stomach with the mannequin leg. Neptune, rushing in from the opposite aisle, finished the job by clobbering him in the head with the shoe stretchers. With the robber out, Neptune quickly disarmed the man in case he woke up before they finished foiling the robbery.

 _One down, six to go,_ Sun thought to himself as he crossed out "Klaus'" name from his wrist. 

/

/

In the Christmas section, "Guenter" was roaming the aisles, looking for any stragglers. Unbeknownst to him, Sun and Neptune were hiding, ready to ambush him. To catch the robber's attention, Sun dropped a Christmas ornament behind "Guenter". The ornament shattered, alerting the robber.

As soon as he realized that it was just an ornament, the robber turned back around...only to be met with a sudden smack to the face from Sun's curtain rod. He crumbled to the ground, knocked out cold from one hit. 

_Almost TOO easy_. Sun smirked as he blew the tip of the curtain rod. It wasn't a smoking gun, like what John McClane would have at the end of an epic gun fight, but it would do. With that, Sun crossed off "Guenter" from his wrist.

/

/

In the television aisle, Asher Mora was roaming around, wondering where the others were. For some reason, two members of his team had gone missing. 

"Hey, Asher."

Asher didn't have time to react to hearing his name called. He turned around, but as soon as he did, he was knocked out cold by a single punch to the face. Even Sun was surprised by how easy that knockout was.

"That'll teach you to have a dumb, normal name," Sun said. He then reached into his back pocket and pulled out a roll of red-and-white duct tape. It was interrogation time. 

/

/

Back by Santa's chair, Sun and Neptune had managed to round up "Klaus", "Guenter", and Asher Mora. The three robbers were all tied up and had the same, matching red-and-white duct tape on their mouths.

Starting off with "Klaus", Sun reached over and pulled the tape off the robber's mouth. "All right, where are you holding the hostages?"

"Oh, bet you'd like to know, eh?" the robber said. Immediately, both Neptune and Sun frowned as soon as they recognized the accent. Sun was taking it the worst since the accent was ruining the 'Die Hard' scenario. 

_Oh, come on, he's from Mountain Glenn? What's he gonna do, kill me with his maple syrup, moose, and universal healthcare?!_ "Damn it, you're from Mountain Glenn?" Sun whined out loud, "No! You're so clearly supposed to be Menagerian! Are any of you Menagerian?"

Guenter and Asher shook their heads for no. 

"Okay, how about Atlesian?" Neptune interrupted.

Once again, both robbers shook their heads for no.

"North Mistralian?"

Another no from the robbers.

"Kuroyurian?" When Sun turned to Neptune with a confused look on his face, Neptune quickly explained, saying, "I don't trust the way the Kuroyurians dance."

"No one does." Sun said, accepting the explanation.

Just then, Sun and Neptune heard one of the robbers' walkie-talkies go off. Immediately, Neptune taped Klaus' mouth to prevent him from yelling for help while Sun grabbed the walkie. 

"You there?" a voice on the walkie said.

 _Okay, Mountain Glenn accent. Just gotta sound like I'm the most harmless person you'll ever meet._ "Oh," Sun said, overexaggerating his voice, "Uh, yeah, I was oot, but now I'm back, eh?" The robbers cringing at his obviously fake accent wasn't lost on him. However, Sun chose to ignore their looks. 

"Meet me in the service corridor. We've got a situation with the hostages."

"Okey dokey, sorry to hear aboot that." Turning the walkie off, Sun turned to Neptune with a smile on his face. They were finally closing in on the hostages, which meant saving Weiss. "Service corridor," Sun said to Neptune as he already started heading in that direction.

"That was great, Sun," Neptune complimented as he followed Sun's lead. 

"Thanks!"

As the two detectives left, the three robbers couldn't help but wonder how those two idiots managed to defeat them and fool their own boss. 

* * *

Setting: Coco Adel's (outside the store)

Inside one of the SWAT vans, Arthur Watts was looking over some files concerning the upcoming raid into Coco Adel's. As he read the files, Taiyang joined him, much to his dismay.

"Wukong just texted," Tai said, "He knows where the hostages are. He wants 15 more minutes."

"And I want my lesbian neighbors to be way hotter than they are, but we can't always get what we want, right?" Watts snapped back, making Tai frown at him in both disgust and confusion, "I'm ordering that raid."

As Watts reached for his walkie to give out the signal to the SWAT units, Tai grabbed it first and moved it away from him. Watts then stood up, angry at the level of insubordination on display. "Hey! Give that back to me. Are you serious? I will end your career! You'll be out there working as a model because, well, you know, you're shredded, and I respect that. Give me that walkie talkie, now-"

"-Those are my people in there! You are not gonna give that order!"

"Stand down."

"No."

"Stand down or I'm gonna make you."

/

/

The SWAT teams couldn't help but chuckle as they watched Taiyang Xiao Long literally carry Arthur Watts out of the van. Although they knew they should be helping their commander...they also hated him with a passion. Besides, Tai wasn't actually hurting the man, he was just carrying him away from the van.

Noticing his officers weren't helping out, Watts angrily shouted, "Hey, you turds, get off the roofs and help me! Get off your roofs!"

Eventually, a few officers stepped in to help Watts out. But not before several others took pictures of the situation with their scrolls. 

* * *

Setting: Vale City beach 

Blake Belladonna sighed as she watched the beachgoers splash around in the cold, freezing waters. Despite all her bravado from earlier...she ended up doing what Ironwood and Yang expected her to do. As soon as she touched the water, she gave up and ran. She didn't want to admit it...but there was no way she could deny what just happened. 

"I can't do it," Blake admitted to both Ironwood and Yang, "I'm a wimp, just like you said."

Yang just stared at Blake, not really caring about what happened earlier. Besides, she already knew Blake was going to back out as soon as she got to the water. "I didn't say that," Yang dully said, "and I don't care if you go in."

"Be honest. You're judging me."

"I'm really not."

"I am, a bit." Ironwood interrupted. His arms were folded as he stared at Blake, unhappy that she wasted all of their time. "No lies on Christmas. Now...Xiao Long, shall we?" At that, Yang and Ironwood turned away from Blake and headed for the water. 

Blake pouted, wondering if she should've just stayed home, or with Sun. She had no excuse here; both Yang and Ironwood warned her not to come with them and, foolishly wanting to prove herself for no good reason, ignored their warnings. _Argh...Yang even pointed out that I hated the cold. Of all the stupid things I've done..._

Wanting to forget this night ever happened, she took her scroll out to call Sun. That's when she noticed all the texts she missed.

**SUN WUKONG: I think they are Menagerian**

**SUN WUKONG: Seriously... This is crazy**

**SUN WUKONG: Still a robbery**

**SUN WUKONG: Where you at?**

**SUN WUKONG: Die hard situation !!!**

"What?!" Blake said, panicking over what she was seeing. Just based on what she remembered from movie night, 'Die Hard' was about a cop who became trapped in a high-rise due to terrorists taking the building over and holding everyone hostage-

"Oh! Oh no! Guys! Captain? Yang? Oh, please hear me from land!" Blake stopped when she realized she was too far from Yang and Ironwood for them to hear her. Knowing what she had to do to get their attention, Blake gulped out of fear as she ran towards the water. 

"Oh, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no! Oh, my God, oh, my God, oh, my God, oh, my God-"

That was all before she even reached the water. As soon as she did, her panic levels went off the charts.

"OH, MY GOD. OH, MY GOD. OH! AHH!"

Yang and Ironwood turned around, recognizing the sounds of Blake whining behind them. Although they were both disappointed in her earlier, they couldn't help but be impressed with her trying to conquer her fear of the cold. 

Ironwood, proud of his fellow officer, said, "Ah, welcome to the frozen-"

"-SHUT YOUR DUMB POEM MOUTH! Oh, I'm so sorry! No, I'm not! We have a crisis! We have to go! Let's go! Cold, cold, cold, cold, cold, cold, cold!"

Although Ironwood and Yang had no idea what was happening, they both followed Blake out of the water. Knowing just how much Blake hated the cold, they reasoned that whatever this crisis was, it had to be big enough for Blake to join them in the water.

* * *

Setting: Coco Adel's service corridor

Now armed with the robbers' pistols, Sun and Neptune made their way down the corridor to rescue Weiss and the other hostages. After reaching the end of the corridor, they peeked over inside the room to their left. There were two robbers there, both armed to the teeth. Immediately, Sun and Neptune retreated to rethink their plan. 

"How are we gonna get past them without a gunfight?" Neptune whispered.

"I'll tell you how John McClane would do it," Sun said, confidently, "The vents."

"Ah, blast the AC, they get chilly, they leave to find sweaters."

"What, no! We're gonna climb through them."

"Even better! Classic use of vents."

Immediately, Sun got to work. Using some empty shelves to boost him up, he began unscrewing the bolts on one of the ceiling vents. Meanwhile, Neptune went back down the corridor to keep an eye on the robbers. 

The plan was going smoothly...until... _ding!_ Sun grimaced as the nail he unscrewed suddenly slipped from his hand and hit the ground, loudly ringing on impact. 

Sun looked at Neptune, who then looked back at the two robbers to see if they heard anything. Amazingly, it looked like neither of them noticed a thing. Both Sun and Neptune heard some radio chatter coming from the other side but nothing to indicate that they were in trouble. 

"I think we're good," Neptune said, making Sun sigh in relief. 

That lasted for only a second when the entire vent cover suddenly fell to the ground, having been loosened by Sun. The noise was so loud, the robbers would have had to been deaf to not hear it. 

"I don't think we're good anymore!" Neptune panicked as he ran back to Sun.

Sun and Neptune began looking around for something to help them out. As they did, they heard the robbers approach. "Who's there? Dave, is that you?"

"What are we gonna do?!" Neptune said to Sun, "They know we're here!

"No, they know I'm here," Sun said as he slowly formulated a plan. It was risky...but it was worth a shot. "Quick, hide! Go, go, go, go!" Hoping that Sun knew what he was doing, Neptune went back down the corridor to hide from the robbers. Meanwhile, Sun stood in the open, ready to meet the robbers face-to-face. 

_Okay, this is it. Your John McClane moment. It's...time...to...act! Come on, you've been on undercover missions before!_

As soon as the two robbers turned the corner, Sun approached them. With his overexaggerated Mountain Glenn accent, he said, "Hey, hosers! It's me, Dave, eh?"

Unsurprisingly, one of the robbers punched Sun in the stomach. He immediately lurched over, having had the wind knocked out of him. 

"Well...that didn't work."

The robber then punched Sun again, this time in the head. He was knocked out cold. 

* * *

Setting: Coco Adel's service corridor (hostage area)

"Sun! Sun! Sun!"

Frustrated that the monkey faunus wasn't getting up, Weiss Schnee managed to move her legs and kicked him in the chest. Even though her hands and feet were bound together, she was able to hit Sun just hard enough to get him to wake up. He groaned as he tried to rub his sides. Unfortunately, due to his hands and feet also being bound together, he couldn't reach them. 

"Are you okay?" Weiss asked, genuinely concerned about Sun's well-being.

Sun groaned again as he struggled to sit up. "Oh...my head hurts. Probably from being conked on it. How are you?"

"I'm tied up. I'm scared. This guy hasn't stopped farting for the last hour."

Weiss pointed to store employee Fox Alistair, who was sitting right behind her. He looked away, unhappy at being blamed for the bad smell...again. "I keep telling you, it's not me," he said. 

"Fox, do you really want your last words to be a lie?"

"Those aren't gonna be your last words, Fox, all right?" Sun interrupted, "We're all gonna be fine. They're gonna drill into the safe, take the money, and then go."

"They don't need to drill into the safe," Fox dully said, "They had my ID. They already have all the cash."

"What? Then why'd they bring all that heavy-duty equipment?"

Just then, Weiss' attention was turned away from Sun and Fox. Curious, Sun turned around to see what - or, rather, who - she was looking at. It was a man with a scar on his face, light tan skin, green eyes, and brown hair in a short bowl cut. The man (who suspiciously resembled Pyke Rite) approached Sun. As he did, Sun noticed that he was carrying a large power drill. Sun wondered if that was for show, for the robbery, or for something more sinister. 

"So...you're a cop," Pyke said, "Ah. I hate cops. They gave me this." Pyke then pointed to the scar on his face.

Despite being confronted by the leader of the robbers, Sun couldn't help but feel relieved. After the disappointing interrogation of the robber from Mountain Glenn, this guy seemed like a genuine 'Die Hard' villain. "Nice! Finally, a good bad guy. This dude gets it."

"Now I'm gonna kill you." Pyke then pulled out a gun and aimed it right at Sun's head. 

Despite how fun this hostage situation was in living out his action movie fantasies, this was the first time this whole night that Sun genuinely felt terrified. Usually, the bad guys would monologue and draw out their threats. This guy, however, wanted to skip to the part where he just killed his hostages. "Okay, you took it a little too far. Maybe scale it back a skosh."

Before Pyke could pull the trigger, his walkie-talkie suddenly went off. "All set down here," the voice on the talkie said.

"Okay, start loading out," Pyke replied back on his talkie, "I just have one piece of business to take care of."

"You know, killing a man is not as easy as it sounds," Sun said, hoping he could appeal to the robbers' humanity.

Instead, Pyke just cocked his gun, ready to fire. "I've killed ten men."

"And that's such a nice, round number! Wouldn't you agree? I mean, imagine. 'I've killed 11 people.' It just sounds so...cumbersome!" Sun laughed nervously, wondering if this was truly the end for him. 

Suddenly, right before Pyke pulled the trigger, the vent behind him fell to the ground. He turned around, just as Neptune Vasilias, who was now in his tank top, dropped down from the vent. Neptune, with a lead pipe in his hand, swung hard and connected with Pyke's face. The robber was knocked out cold and he crumbled to the ground, right by Weiss. Sun and Weiss smiled, overjoyed at the fact that Neptune, of all people, just saved them. 

"WOO!" Neptune shouted as he casually threw his lead pipe away, "YIPPIE KAYAK, OTHER BUCKETS!"

For once, Sun and Weiss were happy to see Neptune enjoying himself...even if he ruined his hero entrance by not remembering the one-liner. "Vasilias!" Sun cheered, "You did it! And you completely botched the catchphrase!"

"I'm pretty sure it was right."

"No, but you did great!"

Moving fast, Neptune use a pair of nail-clippers to cut the restraints from Sun and Weiss' hands and feet. Now free, Sun turned to Neptune, realizing the night wasn't over. There was still the remaining robbers about to escape with the contents of the safe. 

"All right," Sun said, "Look, we have to stop the other robbers. They're escaping with the merch."

"How?" Neptune said, unsure what Sun was thinking, "Taiyang's got the place surrounded."

As Sun thought about how the robbers were planning on escaping, it suddenly occurred to him what their grand plan was. The answer was right there, he just had to piece the clues together. "The drill," he said, "It's not for the safe. They're using it to tunnel out of here. And those farts Weiss kept smelling?"

"Uh-huh, they were Fox," Weiss said, as she casually pointed to Fox behind her.

"No, it was sewage."

"And Fox."

"Look, we have to tell Taiyang they're escaping through the sewers."

As if he was ready for this, Neptune reached for his back pocket and pulled out his walkie-talkie. "Man, what's a brother got to do to get a wet wipe?" Neptune joked as he called for Taiyang.

"Don't say that," Sun groaned. 

* * *

Setting: Coco Adel's (outside the store)

One of the manhole covers in the middle of the street shifted open, revealing the robber who was talking to Pyke Rite earlier. He didn't make it far; as soon as he stuck his head out, he was confronted by Taiyang Xiao Long, Scarlet David, and Sage Ayana. They all their pistols aimed at him. 

"Merry Christmas," Taiyang said, triumphantly.

"Ho ho ho," Sage added.

Then, completely ruining the moment, Scarlet lowered his gun and rubbed his stomach. "I'm starving," he muttered. 

Tai glared at him. "'I'm starving?' We had a thing going!"

Scarlet just shrugged, not really caring. 

As the rest of the robbers were taken into custody, Weiss, Neptune, Sun, and the hostages were soon escorted out of the building by Vale PD. Seeing Sun exit the building, Blake rushed over to him, happy to see he was unharmed. 

"Sun!" she said, "Oh, I'm so glad you're okay." Catching Sun off-guard, she kissed him as if she thought she was never going to see him again. 

After she pulled away, Sun could only stare at her. He was happy, but still surprised. "Wow, you were really worried about me?"

"Mm-hmm! Also your face is so warm, and I think I have hypothermia." She then kissed him again. Whether it was out of joy that Sun was alive or that his body heat was warming her up, it didn't really matter to her at the moment. 

As Sun and Blake kissed, Captain James Ironwood approached Taiyang, who had just finished helping with bringing the robbers into custody. "Sergeant, we need to talk," Ironwood said.

Taiyang froze, recalling that he had dragged Arthur Watts, the senior officer on the scene, out of his van. "I'm not in trouble for what I did to Doctor Evil, am I? You think people will believe he threw himself in the garbage?"

"No. But this was a high-pressure situation, and you rose to the occasion. You may have saved lives tonight."

"The squad is my family, and I'll always protect my family. Well...except for Qrow. That deadbeat drunkard can fend for himself."

"There's a Lieutenant's exam coming up...and I think you should take it. It's the next step to becoming a Captain."

"I didn't do anything. It was all Sun and Neptune."

"Mm, spoken like a true Captain." At that, Taiyang couldn't help but smile. It was nice to hear praise from the head of their division. But then, literally a second later, Ironwood added, "Also, you are in trouble. You're suspended one week. But you've got a bright future. But I'll need your badge and gun."

Taiyang sighed at this. He knew it was coming but it still hurt to hear, especially after taking the bad guys down. 

In one of the ambulances, Neptune approached Sun with a gift bag in his hand. "Hey, buddy," he said to Sun, "I couldn't find the cologne you wanted to give Blake...but I did get a Canyon Stank gift set. It's all three stanks, plus the body spray."

Sun, who was holding an ice pack to his head since he was still dazed from getting struck earlier, couldn't help but feel guilty in receiving this gift. After a night of playing action hero, he had forgotten that this all started because he lied about getting Neptune a present. "Oh, wow. Thanks, Neptune. Yeah. Look...I didn't forget Blake's gift. I forgot yours. The Canyon Stank was for you."

Neptune stepped back. He looked hurt. "What? Why didn't you just tell me? Oh, because it would have crushed my heart and ruined our friendship. Good call-"

"-Look, it sucks, and I was selfish. I should have gotten you something better."

"You did! You surrendered yourself to keep me safe. Not only that, you sacrificed your John McClane moment! It should have been you saying, 'Yippie kayak, other buckets'!"

"Ah, I know you have the moral high ground right now, but it still makes me so angry."

"Eh, don't worry about it!"

"Anyways, Merry Christmas, buddy."

"You too, buddy."

At that, both men shook hands. The bromance was going to survive this Christmas after all.

Suddenly, both Sun and Neptune saw that one of the robbers managed to free himself from his handcuffs. Thinking fast, Sun pulled out the body spray from his Canyon Stank gift set and tossed it over to Weiss.

"Weiss!" Sun shouted. Weiss managed to catch the spray, then, after taking her lighter out, sprayed into the flames. A sudden burst of fire shot out, scaring the robber, causing him to slip. This allowed another squad of officers to pin him down and restrain him once again. 

"Woo, it works!" Weiss yelled as she continued shooting fire balls from the can of body spray, "The flamethrower works!"

"Yeah!" Sun cheered alongside her. However, as soon as Weiss started shooting fire at everyone around her, Sun's smile dropped into a frown. "No, Weiss, no! Weiss, no!"

"Somebody take her down!" Taiyang yelled as the madwoman continued her relentless attack. It was safe to say that this was the most fun Weiss had the whole night. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Based on: "Yippie Kayak" (Brooklyn Nine-Nine, season 3, episode 10)
> 
> Alright, that's it for the Nondescript Holiday Spectacular 2020. Hope y'all enjoyed the two chapters. Have a wonderful Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, and all other holidays that you and your friends and family celebrate this month. 
> 
> After this...it's back to the icy, Solitas tundra with another installment of "Grimms"...
> 
> AN: Lindsay and Barbara, Tai and Raven's other kids in this universe (and Yang's younger, full siblings), were named after the voice actresses for Ruby and Yang.
> 
> AN2: Author goof. I could not recognize some of the items that Jake and Boyle took for their weapons. So if an item is incorrect, that's because I honestly didn't know what it was. If you do know what the correct items are, please let me know and I'll make the appropriate changes.


	32. Scenes from Roman's Hat

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An excerpt from a world where the cast of RWBY are simple improv performers...

**Roman Torchwick:** "Good evening and welcome to 'Whose Line Is It Anyway?' Tonight's performers are..."

"Perfectly balanced, as all things should be... **Ruby Rose!** "

"You're not the only one cursed with knowledge... **Weiss Schnee!** "

"I know what it's like to lose... **Blake Belladonna!** "

"And you should have gone for the head... **Yang Xiao Long!** "

"And I'm your host, Roman Torchwick! Come on down, let's have some fun!"

* * *

SCENES FROM ROMAN'S HAT

Setting: The Whose Line auditorium, being filmed in front of a live studio audience (Roman is sitting at a desk near center stage while Ruby, Weiss, Blake, and Yang are sitting upstage, facing the audience)

**Roman Torchwick:** "Welcome back to 'Whose Line Is It Anyway?', a show where everything's made up and the points don't matter. That's right, the points are as useless as couples therapy is to Ozpin and Salem. Just doesn't matter. Now, let's move onto a game called 'Scenes from a Hat', this is for all four performers."

_The crowd cheers as Ruby, Weiss, Blake, and Yang step up to center stage. Ruby and Weiss move to the stage left while Blake and Yang move to stage right._

**Roman Torchwick:** "Now what happens is, before the show, we had the audience write down different suggestions for scenes that our performers can act out. And we put them all in my bowler hat, as you can see. Let's see how many scenes they can think of. So, let's start off with..."

**PROMPT 1: Things you can say about your boyfriend/girlfriend...but not the faunus people**

_Yang steps up. Blake steps up as well and folds her arms, waiting for Yang's answer. Yang sheepishly smiles at Blake, knowing that she had to choose her words carefully here._

**Yang Xiao Long:** "Babe, you're like a wild animal in bed! You're just so intense, it's like you're not tamed!"

_The crowd laughs as Blake glares at Yang. Yang shrugs, which makes Blake chuckle. As Yang tries to walk off stage, Blake pulls her back for another scene._

**Blake Belladonna:** "Babe...I already told you, this is not an equal relationship. You can't have equal rights, no matter how much you protest."

_Yang and the crowd chuckle a bit uncomfortably at Blake's dark joke. Blake and Yang then walk back to stage right, as Roman reaches into his hat for the next prompt._

**Roman Torchwick:** "For the record, this show is pro-faunus rights. Maybe not the kill-all-humans version of pro-faunus rights that Adam Taurus and the White Fang support, but pro-faunus nonetheless. Anyways, moving on!"

**PROMPT 2: What Yang Xiao Long is thinking right now**

_Weiss Schnee steps up. She then pretends to start panicking._

**Weiss Schnee:** "I swear I'm not racist to faunus, I swear!"

_Weiss walks off-stage, Ruby Rose then steps up._

**Ruby Rose:** "...dayumn, Blake's looking extra fine tonight."

_Ruby walks off-stage, Blake steps up._

**Blake Belladonna:** "Mmm...Weiss is looking fine tonight."

_Blake walks off-stage, Weiss steps up._

**Weiss Schnee:** "You know, I wasn't sure about the whole Jaune Arc harem thing...but according to everyone, he's amazing in bed and is the best lover in the world, so I might give it a shot."

_Weiss walks off-stage, Yang steps up, looking extra grumpy._

**Yang Xiao Long:** "I hate everyone in this room right now."

_Yang walks off-stage, Ruby then runs up to center stage with an eager look on her face._

**Ruby Rose:** "Look, I don't mind the Freezerburn, Bumbleby, or Dragonslayer stuff, but at least no one ships me with my half-sister...right? Right? Because that would be SICK. Like...ew! Knock that crap off!"

_Ruby walks off-stage. Roman is laughing his ass off as he reaches into his hat._

**Roman Torchwick:** "Aww...no love for the Yang x Neo shippers?"

 **Yang Xiao Long:** "Don't give the audience any ideas!"

 **Roman Torchwick:** "What? I just thought it'd be funny!"

**PROMPT 3: People who shouldn't be the headmaster for Beacon Academy**

_Yang Xiao Long steps up._

**Yang Xiao Long:** "Students, I'm adding a new rule for all of you to follow. Everyone still has their final exams...but if they don't provide me ice cream by the end of the year, then I'll chop your head off with my umbrella."

 **Roman Torchwick:** "Hang on, Neo's a mute."

 **Yang Xiao Long:** "Oh, you're right!" (repeats what she said but in sign language, then pretends to cut her head off and falls down on stage) 

_Yang stands up from the ground and walks off-stage, Ruby steps up._

**Ruby Rose:** (points at herself, then shrugs)

_Ruby walks off-stage, Blake steps up._

**Blake Belladonna:** (pretends to drink wine) "Damn, how drunk did I have to be to f*** Jacques Gelé?"

_Blake walks off-stage, Weiss steps up._

**Weiss Schnee:** "Oh, wow, this academy allows faunus to attend? And they all look so healthy, compared to the slaves in my mines-I mean, my well-paid and respected workers!"

 **Roman Torchwick:** "Wow, both Willow and Jacques getting roasted tonight?"

 **Weiss Schnee:** "Like the prompt said...they shouldn't be the headmaster! And I'm their daughter, so I'm allowed to roast them."

_Weiss walks off-stage, Ruby steps up._

**Ruby Rose:** "Haha, Magnhild go brrrr! Explosions go brrrr! Pancakes go brrrr! Ren go brrrr!"

_Ruby walks off-stage, Yang steps up._

**Yang Xiao Long:** "Mmm...I'll show you Blowhard...but only if you do the same to me. Yeah, I know you're a student. That just makes it more fun!"

_Yang walks off-stage, Roman is cringing as he reaches into his hat._

**Roman Torchwick:** "You know, I never realized that Peter Port's weapon is literally called Blowhard. Like...do you think he's aware of that?"

 **Yang Xiao Long:** "Don't know and I don't want to know."

**PROMPT 4: Cursed RWBY ships**

_Ruby, Weiss, Blake, and Yang start laughing their asses off as they come up with scenes for this prompt._

_Ruby is the first to step up._

**Ruby Rose:** (impersonating Jaune Arc's voice) "Mmm...was it as good for you as it was for me?" / (impersonating Adam Taurus' voice) "You stupid human! I thought you were supposed to be amazing in bed!" 

_Ruby walks off-stage, Weiss steps up._

**Weiss Schnee:** "Winter...what the hell is Roman doing in your bed?"

_Weiss walks off-stage, Roman is seen pouting as he stares down Weiss._

**Roman Torchwick:** "Oh come on, you don't think it would work out between me and the ice queen?"

 **Weiss Schnee:** "First up, that's my sister you're talking about. Second...in your dreams, Torchwick."

 **Roman Torchwick:** "Eh...fair enough." 

_Blake steps up after Weiss and Roman stop arguing. Before she starts talking, she calls for Yang to join her onstage. Yang steps up, a little confused since she doesn't know where Blake is going with this scene._

**Blake Belladonna:** "Yang, I know you're single, so I went on this dating app and got you matched with someone! She's great, you're gonna like her a lot. She's feisty, she likes fighting with people, and she has a wicked sense of humor. Oh, her name is Raven Branwen by the way-"

_Yang bursts out laughing, which makes Blake stop the scene. Both women walk off-stage as Roman facepalms himself. Ruby has her face in her hands, a bit sickened at the idea of Yang dating her mother._

**Blake Belladonna:** "Don't judge me, the prompt specifically asked for cursed ships!"

 **Roman Torchwick:** "Oh trust me, I'm not judging you. I'm judging whoever submitted this prompt!"

_Yang steps up after she finishes laughing._

**Yang Xiao Long:** "Ruby...I know I said I'll keep an open mind when it comes to you dating. But, just what the hell do you see in Arthur Watts, really?"

_Yang walks off-stage as Ruby pretends to vomit. Weiss then steps up._

**Weiss Schnee:** (impersonating Cinder Fall's voice) "Get on your knees and worship my feet, you peasant! For it is me, Cinder, your mistress!" / (impersonating Lie Ren's voice) "Wow, I'm so glad I broke up with Nora for this, this is wonderful!" 

_Weiss walks off-stage, the camera quickly cuts to Nora and Ren sitting in the audience. They are both laughing hysterically at the joke. Ruby then steps up._

**Ruby Rose:** (impersonating Blake Belladonna's voice, pretends she's on her scroll talking to someone) "Oh yeah, baby, tell me more. I love it when you talk about that thing." / (impersonating Ozpin's voice) "Miss Belladonna, I'm assigning you extra homework. Meet me in the school auditorium...tonight."

_Ruby walks off-stage, Blake crosses her arms and glares at Ruby. She starts blushing in embarrassment at the thought of her dating Ozpin. Roman reaches into his hat for another prompt, laughing as he did._

**Roman Torchwick:** "My, my, my...Miss Belladonna, I didn't know you were into older men."

 **Yang Xiao Long:** "You should see the usual stuff she reads. I haven't read all her books but I'm pretty sure most of the men in there weren't fresh out of the academy, if you know what I mean."

 **Blake Belladonna:** "Hey, I'm standing right here!"

**PROMPT 5: If you used stripper moves to perform your huntsman/huntress activities**

_Blake steps up._

**Blake Belladonna:** "Oh no, a Grimm is attacking the city! I need to activate my semblance to fight it!" (starts smacking her butt in a provocative way) 

_Blake walks off-stage, Yang steps up._

**Yang Xiao Long:** "Don't worry guys, I brought my sword! Come here, you nasty Grimm!" (pretends to swordfight, which gradually devolves into her humping the wind) "Did I mention that my sword is in my crotch!"

_Yang walks off-stage, Blake facepalms herself. Ruby then steps up._

**Ruby Rose:** "Sometimes, the best way to fight the Grimm...is to sneak up behind it."

 **Ruby Rose:** (Ruby gets down on the floor and starts crawling around. She is moving around normally at first but her movements get sexier and sexier as she keeps going. She then shakes her butt towards the audience, making Weiss, Blake, and Yang laugh out loud)

 **Ruby Rose:** "Don't worry, that's just me signaling my teammates to get ready to ambush the Grimm."

_Ruby walks off-stage, Weiss steps up._

**Weiss Schnee:** "Oh, wow...I need to stay in shape if I'm going to be fighting the Grimm! Good thing I still remember the exercises that they taught back in Beacon." (pretends to pole dance).

_Weiss walks off-stage. Just as Yang is about to step up, Weiss runs back onstage._

**Weiss Schnee:** "But seriously though, pole dancing is a legitimate exercise and I respect anyone who has the strength to pull it off."

_Weiss walks off-stage again as Yang, Blake, and Ruby applaud her. Roman nods his head, agreeing with Weiss._

_Yang steps up._

**Yang Xiao Long:** "Eat my chest missiles, Grimm!" (squeezes her breasts together) "Oh no, I'm out of ammo! I need to reload!" (jumps up, making her boobs bounce which "reloads" the missiles)

_Yang walks off-stage. Roman reaches into his hat for another prompt. His mouth is open, somewhat shocked at Yang's bit near the end._

**Roman Torchwick:** "Oh, to all the parents at home who are watching the show with their kids...I'm not apologizing, that was some damn good television just now."

 **Yang Xiao Long:** (buries her face in her hands, embarrassed) 

**PROMPT 6: If Dr. Seuss was in charge of RWBY's writing staff**

_Blake steps up._

**Blake Belladonna:** "One Grimm, two Grimm, red Grimm, blue Grimm...it's Ozma's fault we're dealing with Salem."

_Blake walks off-stage, Ruby steps up._

**Ruby Rose:** "Don't look scared, don't look sick. I'm really a good person, I'm Roman Torchwick."

_Ruby walks off-stage while giving Roman a smug look. Roman glares at her but starts chuckling at the joke._

_Weiss steps up._

**Weiss Schnee:** "Would you like the Relic of Knowledge? Would you like it in your cottage? Would you like it in college? Would you keep Jinn the Genie hostage? I do not like the Relic of Knowledge. I do not like them in my cottage. I do not like them in college. I do not want to keep Jinn the Genie hostage."

_Weiss walks off-stage, Yang steps up._

**Yang Xiao Long:** "Let me tell you a story that makes me sad. Qrow and Winter fought, that was really bad. They fought in my office, much to my dismay. You know, flirting was a lot less destructive in my day."

**PROMPT 7: Odd things to hear from the voices inside your head**

_Yang steps up._

**Yang Xiao Long:** "I wonder why the producers chose a criminal mastermind as the host for our improv comedy show."

_Yang walks off-stage, Roman stares at the camera like a character from "The Office"._

**Roman Torchwick:** "It's because I'm full of charisma and I'm f****** hilarious. That and Neo threatened to blow up the studio if I didn't get the job."

_Ruby steps up._

**Ruby Rose:** "Wait a minute...why do I look more like Uncle Qrow than my supposedly biological dad? Mom...is there something you're not telling me?"

_Ruby walks off-stage as the camera cuts to Qrow Branwen, who is sitting in the audience. Like Roman, he stares at the camera like a character from "The Office"._

_Blake steps up._

**Blake Belladonna:** "Hang on...is it just me or does Neopolitan sound like Weiss when she's singing? Maybe it's just a coincidence. Or...maybe..."

_Blake walks off-stage on that cliffhanger. Weiss steps up._

**Weiss Schnee:** "Oh no, I'm hearing voices in my head. Wait...why are the voices in my head commenting on the voices in my head? Are there other voices I'm not aware of? Do the voices in my head have other voices in their heads? Wait, how can the voices in my head have their own heads? What is this bit?"

_Weiss walks off-stage, Yang steps up._

**Yang Xiao Long:** "Come on, you know you want to say a pun to the audience. Come on, Xiao Long, you know you want to. Don't resist me, you know you can't resist making a pun! It's in your blood, it's in your nature as a Xiao Long! Search your feelings, you know it to be true!"

 **Yang Xiao Long:** (starts pretending that she's struggling with her inner voice) No...no...you can't make me do it. I won't let you take over again! I won't let you make me say a pun! Wow, you know, I just realized this bit has been going for a long time now...a Xiao Long-time, so to say-no, I did it again! 

_Yang screams and runs off-stage, Ruby steps up._

**Ruby Rose:** "Hold on, the more I think about it...I never found out the reason why Uncle Qrow was depressed and became an alcoholic in the first place. Or why he cares so much about me, even though I'm technically not his niece. Is the real reason why he's depressed and became an alcoholic is because he lost my mom, his secret lover? And is the reason why he decided to mentor me is because I'm his daughter and this is the only way he could be a father to me? Is my whole life just a lie-"

_Weiss steps up and gently pushes Ruby off-stage._

_Weiss then returns to center stage._

**Weiss Schnee:** (takes a deep breath) "GAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

_Without explaining why she just yelled out frantically, Weiss walks off-stage. Ruby stares at Weiss as she laughs her ass off at her. Roman Torchwick is also laughing since he wasn't expecting Weiss to just suddenly lose her mind._

**Roman Torchwick:** "You alright there, Schnee?"

 **Weiss Schnee:** "It was the voices in my head that made me do it."

 **Roman Torchwick:** "What did they tell you?"

 **Weiss Schnee:** "That Winter might have a thing for Ruby's uncle and that if they were to get together, I would become Ruby's aunt. I was just imagining Ruby calling me 'Auntie Weiss'."

 **Ruby Rose:** "Well, that's technically not gonna happen. I'm not really his niece, so you'd be more like my aunt-figure. Now if I was his daughter, then you'd be my aunt." 

**Weiss Schnee:** "Oh Brothers, please no."

_Blake steps up._

**Blake Belladonna:** "I wonder what would happen if our letters were mixed around? Would we still be a hit if our team was called 'WYRB'?"

_Blake walks off-stage, Ruby steps up._

**Ruby Rose:** "Oh my Oum...I have a dead mom, my dad might actually be someone else, I'm not that smart, I'm a socially awkward teenager with special powers, I have my own theme song, and the show's name sounds like my name. I'm a shonen anime protagonist!"

_Ruby walks off-stage as Roman starts hitting his buzzer repeatedly, ending the game._

**Roman Torchwick:** "We'll be right back to 'Whose Line is it Anyway', don't go anywhere!" 

* * *

BONUS: HOEDOWN!

[(Play this as you read)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5iZkz1aRfGs&ab_channel=AllenPage)

**Yang Xiao Long**

I am a power puncher...I knock enemies out on sight

Don’t get me angry...I’m always down for a fight

And you know what will make me angry to an utmost certainty?

If I find out some scumbag wants Ruby’s virginity!!!

_(Ruby, at the end of the line: "YANG! WHY?!")_

**Blake Belladonna**

Humans don’t like me...because I’m a faunus

They think I’m sus...like an impostor in “Among Us”

Sometimes, I think that I should’ve stayed in the White Fang

Oh wait, that’s right, that was also my ex-boyfriend’s murder gang

**Weiss Schnee**

Money, money, money...that’s what people think of me

Before my brains and good looks, they first notice I’m a Schnee

It’s really quite infuriating...people are so mean 

I’m not just a basic rich girl, I’m Weiss, the ICE QUEEN! 

_(Weiss winces in embarrassment from her last line while Ruby starts to laugh at her. Weiss shamefully whispers to her, “I had to make the last line rhyme”. Ruby then regains her composure for the final verse)_

**Ruby Rose**

I am the Team Leader of RWBY, hell yeah, that’s me

First I beat the bad guys, then I enjoy a cookie

Hopefully, we can beat Salem, can I get an amen? (amen!)

How about you uncle...oh no, Uncle Qrow is drunk again!?

**All together**

Uncle Qrow is drunk again!!!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Based on: Whose Line is it Anyway?
> 
> So...this chapter was a bit random. Honestly, writing the chapters for "Grimms" is a bit draining since that movie is so dark and intense. I wanted to write something fun and short as a breather, which resulted in this chapter.


	33. Amazing Rap Skirmishes of Fiction!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> MC Ruby Rose faces off against a rival MC from another dimension...

## AMAZING RAP SKIRMISHES OF FICTION! 

## DAISY JOHNSON

## VERSUS

## RUBY ROSE

## BEGIN!

* * *

**Daisy Johnson**

Agent Daisy Johnson of S.H.I.E.L.D., reporting for duty 

My mission: to terminate this punk bitch, whiny girl named Ruby

If you bring Weiss, Blake, and Yang in here, they'll all get their asses kicked

I'll beat all of Team RWBY, just like what the cancel mob did to Vic 

8 volumes in and still, you got that low viewership 

Your story so lame, only thing that excites your fans are your toxic ships! 

Character development? Ha! You’re as 2D as your chest! 

My show’s got people obsessed, we’re some of the MCU’s best!

And by the way, “Once Upon a Time” did your shtick but better

You’re just an edgy Red Riding Hood, only kids think that’s clever -

\- writing that is, which your show seems to have a lack of 

I’ll quake your ass off, so it’s best that you just back off.

**Ruby Rose**

Yawn! You really think you said anything I haven’t heard of?

Time to murder this no-name, third-rate X-Men rip-off

I’m the top of my show, they even named it after me!

You got hated for hogging the spotlight from seasons 1 to 3

Are you even the best character from your series?

All I hear about is Fitzsimmons and their fandom’s baby theories

Low viewership? ABC wanted to kill your show because the ratings weren't higher

The only reason you got 7 seasons was because you got saved by Ghost Rider

Also, the writers had to force you down the fandom’s throats 

They even made you strip for views, made you a super-ho 

Damn girl, you look shaken, I think you’re in shambles

Call me the Hive because I’ll leave you dead like Lincoln Campbell!

**Daisy Johnson**

Who you calling a X-Men rip-off, you generic anime bitch

“Let’s rip-off Avatar”, wasn’t that your writers’ shitty story pitch!?

**Ruby Rose**

I may have ripped off Avatar, but at least I stole from something with quality

Not that you would know about quality, you X-Files and Supernatural wannabe!

**Daisy Johnson**

Don't you talk about quality when your whole show fell off after season 3

When they stopped being about the story and pandered to fans of Bumbleby!

You talk so much, but you can't beat me like Maka in a Death Battle

And by the way, screw your show for turning the civil rights group into violent assholes

**Ruby Rose**

If we’re gonna talk about sisters, let’s talk about yours 

Showed up in the last season and ended up being a HYDRA whore

This battle is finished, gotta end this with some Fire Dust

You got burned, now I’ll watch the better MCU shows on Disney Plus

* * *

## WHO WON? YOU DECIDE!

## AMAZING RAP SKIRMISHES OF FICTION!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Based on: Epic Rap Battles of History  
> Guest starring: Daisy Johnson of "Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D." fame
> 
> Just a quick chapter for today. To challenge myself, I wanted to do a song chapter. I've never done a music chapter before, so hopefully it turned out well! 
> 
> P.S.: This was also posted on my Tumblr. So, if you see this chapter floating around on the Ruby Rose tag...that's me.
> 
> P.P.S.: Weeks later, it's occurred to me that I didn't credit the maker of the Ruby Rose mugshot edit. I found it through a random google search (I was looking for pics of Ruby looking mean) but I really should've credited the original maker. So, here's the original link: https://sombrellas.tumblr.com/post/614935023807873024/mugshot-edit
> 
> And the maker's info:
> 
> Twitter: Sombrella3  
> Pixiv: Sombrella3


	34. Regret and Shame

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marrow invites everyone to Junior Xiong's nightclub (known as the "Snake Hole") as he debuts a new drink. Meanwhile, Nora encourages Pyrrha to apply for a job with the city. However, at the nightclub, Nora and Pyrrha get into a fight over their dating habits.

Setting: Department of Parks and Recreation, main office

"So...who broke it? I'm not mad, I just want to know."

Ghira Belladonna's words sent shivers down the spines of the parks and recreation staff as they stared at the broken coffee maker that was sitting in front of them. It wasn't hard to see why the machine wasn't working; there was a clear dent on its side, indicating it either fell or something struck it. The problem, though, was determining who was responsible for the dent.

You could almost taste the tension in the room as Lie Ren, Winter Schnee, Maria Calavera, Klein Sieben, and Marrow Amin looked around the room, each one wondering who was the guilty party. Nora Valkyrie, not liking how this emergency meeting was going, decided to take the fall for it. _It's just a coffee maker,_ Nora thought to herself, _we can always buy a new one, it's not the end of the world._

"I did it," Nora started, "I broke-"

"-no, no you didn't," Ghira interrupted, not even bothering to look at Nora, "Marrow?"

Marrow shrugged, not liking that the spotlight was on him now. "Don't look at me," he said as he looked around the room, "Look at Ren." He then turned to Ren, grinning as he did, as if he just found the culprit by randomly guessing.

Ren, understandably, didn't look too pleased to hear his name being thrown out to the group. "What, I didn't break it," he snapped back.

Marrow didn't look impressed. "Huh, that's weird, how'd you even know it was broken?"

"Because it's sitting right in front of us...and it's broken."

"Hmm...suspicious-"

"-no it's not."

As Marrow and Ren glared at each other, Klein Sieben decided to step up, feeling as if he knew the answer. Of course, he didn't, but he also felt that it was worth a shot. It was either that or face Ghira's wrath.

"If it matters, probably not," Klein started, "Winter was the last one to use it-"

"-liar, I don't even drink that crap!" Winter shouted at the elderly man. She looked pissed, unhappy her name was being brought up for this useless meeting.

"Oh really, then what were you doing by the coffee cart earlier?"

"I use the wooden stirs to push my cuticles back, everyone knows that Klein!"

"Okay, okay, let's not fight," Nora shouted, interrupting Winter and Klein's shouting match, "I broke it, let me pay for it, Ghira."

Despite the pleading look in her eyes, Ghira was ruthless. He immediately shook his head, shutting Nora down. "No, who broke it!?" he shouted. For once, his threats were starting to sound serious.

Not wanting to deal with this any further, Ren turned to Ghira, feeling a bit guilty that he was about to do this. Speaking softly so most of the group wouldn't hear, Ren whispered, "Ghira...Maria's been awfully quiet-"

"-Really?!" Maria shouted, having heard what Ren said.

"Yeah really?!"

"Oh. My. God!"

And just like that, the parks and rec department turned into a shouting fest as each employee (aside from Nora) decided to play the blame game. 

* * *

GHIRA'S POV

"I broke it. It burned my hand so I punched it. I predict ten minutes from now they'll be at each other's throats with war paint on their faces and a pig head on a stick"

_Ghira briefly turns around and sees that his co-workers are still yelling at each other, completely unaware of who the true culprit was. Ghira then turns back to the interviewer, please with what he instigated._

"Good. It was getting a little chummy around here."

* * *

** "PARKS AND RECREATION" **

**STARRING**

**NORA VALKYRIE,** **DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF THE PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT**

**(counterpart: Leslie Knope)**

**PYRRHA NIKOS,** **NURSE WORKING AT SAINT OZMA HOSPITAL**

 **(counterpart:** **Ann Perkins)**

**MARROW AMIN,** **ADMINISTRATOR OF THE PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT**

**(counterpart: Tom Haverford)**

**GHIRA BELLADONNA,** **LEAD DIRECTOR OF THE PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT**

**(counterpart: Ron Swanson)**

**WINTER SCHNEE,** **ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT**

**(counterpart: April Ludgate)**

**QROW BRANWEN, CITY HALL** **SHOESHINER**

**(counterpart: Andy Dwyer)**

**LIE REN,** **ASSISTANT CITY MANAGER**

**(counterpart: Ben Wyatt)**

**JAUNE ARC,** **CITY MANAGER**

**(counterpart: Chris Traeger)**

**~~CLEIN~~ / ~~STEIN~~ / ~~WINE~~ / KLEIN SIEBEN, PARKS AND REC ** **EMPLOYEE**

**(counterpart: Jerry Gergich)**

**MARIA CALAVERA, PARKS AND REC** **EMPLOYEE**

**(counterpart: Donna Meagle)**

**Guest Starring**

**BARTHOLOMEW OOBLECK** **(counterpart: Dennis Cooper)**

**SHAY D. MANN (counterpart: Len)**

**EMERALD SUSTRAI (counterpart: Crazy Ira)**

**NADIR SHIKO (counterpart: Kyle)**

**COUNCILMAN CAMILLA (counterpart: Councilman Douglass Howser)**

**MERCURY BLACK (counterpart: Howard "The Douche" Tuttleman)**

**JUNIOR XIONG (counterpart: Freddy)**

**NEPTUNE VASILIAS (counterpart: Jean-Ralphio Saperstein)**

**Cameo appearances by:**

**YANG XIAO LONG**

**MELANIE MALACHITE**

**MILTIA MALACHITE**

**Unseen cast:**

**FLYNT COAL (counterpart: Mark Brendanawicz)**

* * *

Setting: Department of Parks and Recreation, main office

It was a relatively normal day for the City of Vale's parks and recreation staff. Nora was going through her long list of tasks that no one else wanted to do, Winter was sitting at her desk bored to tears, and Klein was eating his ham sandwich...which he proceeded to drop to the ground after taking one bite. For the most part, this was a routine day for the staff.

That was, until Marrow Amin stepped into the room. He had a big smile on his face, as if he had something planned. Knowing the man's desire to start his own business, Nora and Ghira wondered if it was some new business venture or project that he was working on. For Ghira, he respected his employee's amibition; as a libertarian, he believed that humans and faunus should be able to carve out their own success with as little interference from the government as possible. For Nora, she was just happy to see Marrow was happy. 

Marrow stopped in the middle of the room, as if to address everyone in the room. As such, the staff stopped what they were doing and faced him, with everyone wondering what Marrow was thinking. "I need you guys to come to the Snake Hole Lounge tonight to help me with something," he said. Marrow looked around the room, hoping his co-workers were willing to help. 

Much to his surprise, the whole room started groaning. 

"Yeah, no, tonight's not good," Klein said, who Marrow immediately ignored. 

"No can do," Ghira said bluntly. 

"I'm on a cleanse," Maria said, not even bothering to look at Marrow. 

_Oh come on, what happened to supporting your teammates,_ Marrow thought to himself as he looked around the room. "Please!" Marrow pleaded, "This is important. I'm launching my new high-end, Kahlua-style liqueur...'Snake Juice'."

Winter snorted after hearing the name. "Sounds like you took a snake and twisted it like a rag until its blood and guts came out," she sneered, causing Marrow to frown. 

Her boyfriend, Qrow, who was hanging out with the parks and rec crew despite working in the other side of the building, couldn't help but laugh. "Ha ha ha, eww," he said as he went to fist-bump Winter. 

As Qrow and Winter mocked Marrow, Nora Valkyrie found herself being curious over Marrow's liqueur. She never thought of Marrow as having a talent for brewing alcohol but she knew that Marrow always preferred high-end, luxury items. So she thought, this liqueur he was trying to sell must be pretty fancy. "What does Kahlua-style mean?" Nora asked. Marrow turned to her with a big grin, happy to be able to explain. 

"I mix a bunch of alcohol together," Marrow said, "I add some sugar and coffee and some other junk...and it kind of tastes like Kahlua." Nora felt an urge to make a comment about how unhealthy that sounded but chose to refrain, not wanting to ruin Marrow's day. 

"I can only drink warm tap water with cayenne pepper," Maria said, making Marrow frown at her. Maria Calavera was usually up for these late night trips to the Snake Hole Lounge and Marrow was hoping he could at least count on her to come by. 

Seeing that Maria was not willing to budge on this point, Marrow said, "Fine. Then don't drink it. Just get other people to drink it, okay?" At that, Maria shrugged. For Marrow, although she didn't agree to help, at least it wasn't a hard no.

"Meeting in one hour!" Marrow continued, "If you don't make it...you're on my done-zo list."

Resisting the urge to roll his eyes, Lie Ren asked, "Uh, what's a done-zo list?" He had a feeling the answer was going to be idiotic but part of him was also curious. 

Marrow glared at Ren. "It means you and I...are done-zo," he said, with finality, "Hanging out, getting food together. Done-zo. You want to come over to my house and play video games? Done-zo. Hey, Marrow, you want to come play putt-putt with me? No...we're done-zo."

Ren and everyone else in the room just stared at Marrow, unimpressed with his threat. For Ren, he was even wondering if this could even be considered a punishment. 

There was only one person in the group, however, who did take the threat seriously. Turning to Winter, Qrow said, "Babe, we got to make that meeting." All Winter could do was stare at him, disappointed. 

* * *

Setting: City Hall hallway 

Time: Several minutes later...

Due to their busy schedules, Nora Valkyrie and Pyrrha Nikos constantly struggled in finding time to hang out with each other. Ever since Ren and Jaune Arc took over as Vale City's city managers, Nora has been working a lot more than usual in order to meet their demands. At the same time, Pyrrha was given more responsibilities in the hospital she worked at and, with Maria's advice and guidance, started casually dating on the side. Pyrrha, who was coming off of her third failed relationship (Qrow was first, Flynt Coal was second, Jaune Arc was third), was having trouble getting back into the dating scene. So, thanks to Maria, she decided to give casual dating a chance, which turned out to be a success. 

Now, because of all the changes in their lives, it was hard for Nora and Pyrrha to find time to hang out as they used to. So, when the two of them found some time during their respective lunches, they immediately set up a casual hangout in City Hall.

Unfortunately, it just so happened to be in the hallway where the painting of "The Tragedy of Mountain Glenn" was hung. To this day, Pyrrha could not understand why Vale insisted on hanging up a painting that featured people being slaughtered by the Grimm inside City Hall, for all the public to see. On the flipside, after working in the same building for years, Nora was used to the sight of dead villagers being attacked by monsters. She even found the spot relaxing since it was right by the air conditioner. 

"God, I'm so glad we found this time to talk," Nora said, sipping some of her coffee, "It feels like it's been forever."

Pyrrha, who was still in her nurse uniform, nodded her head at that, sipping some of her coffee as well. "I know," she said, "I've been so busy at the hospital. Long hours, overnight shifts...ugh, I'm getting sick of it." 

"All right, let's start with the personal stuff. How's Velvet?" Because they were not hanging out as often, Nora wanted to skip over the usual small-talk and jump straight into the juicy stuff. From what she remembered from the last time they spoke, Pyrrha was deep in the casual dating scene. Her date at the time was Velvet, a rabbit faunus who she apparently met in a speed-dating event. 

That was what Nora remembered. Pyrrha, however, looked at Nora as if she was speaking nonsense. "Who?" Pyrrha asked genuinely. She didn't want to say it out loud but because she was casually dating around, it was getting harder and harder to remember her all of her potential suitors.

"The photographer girl!" Nora clarified.

That was when it came back to Pyrrha. Sadly, it was the only characteristic of her date that stood out in her mind. "Oh, yeah," Pyrrha said with a shrug, "We broke up. I didn't tell you that?"

Nora almost spat out her coffee, not expecting that answer. "Mm-mm!" she said as she put her cup down, "Why?! I liked her!"

Pyrrha shrugged. "Yeah, I did too," she said, "I just... I couldn't deal with...her face."

"Huh...do you think I could get that book back that I loaned her?" 

"Oh, well, I'm technically 'out of the country.' So I would have to call her from a weird number."

That deflated Nora. "Oh," she said, taking another sip of coffee. 

"Sorry!"

"Well...never mind."

"But I'm seeing this new guy, Fox. You would love him! He's a triple Pisces-"

"-uh-oh, looks like someone's gonna be late for her meeting." Pyrrha stopped talking when she and Nora noticed Lie Ren walking by the two of them. Immediately, Nora began grinning, not even trying to hide how happy she was to see Ren. Pyrrha noticed and resisted the urge to call her out on it. She knew that Nora liked him...and that Ren liked her. But, being the good friend that she was, she decided to let the two of them sort out their feelings themselves.

"I'll race you," Nora said, a little too eagerly. 

Ren smirked at that as he walked by the bench. "Really?" he said, "Isn't that a little childish?" Then, without warning, he took off down the hallway. 

Nora laughed at this as she stood up to chase after Ren. "Hey, no head starts!" she yelled, "Bye, Pyrrha! Sorry, got to go! Hey, move!"

A woman in a suit stepped out from a hallway to Nora's right, bumping into her. Nora was about to yell at the woman for blocking her path until she saw who it was. "Oh! Councilman Camilla, sorry! Nice to see you as always!" Nora then ran off, not noticing that Camilla was staring at her, utterly confused. 

"Bye," Pyrrha said as Nora disappeared from sight. She pouted as she realized she still had a solid thirty minutes left in her lunch.

_Great...I guess I'll just sit here...go on Tweeter._

* * *

Setting: Conference room, office of the parks and recreation department 

As he mentioned earlier that morning, Marrow Amin was holding his marketing meeting for his new brand of alcohol that was making its debut later that night. Of the department, only five people showed up to help; Ghira, Winter, Qrow, Maria, and Klein. Qrow because he didn't want to be put on the "done-zo" list, Winter because she is Qrow's girlfriend and was dragged into this, Ghira because he respected Marrow's businessman attitude, Klein because he just wanted to be useful, and Maria because...she was bored and had nothing else to do that day. 

"Welcome...to Guerilla Marketing 101," Marrow said as the five others in the room read the scripts he gave them, "What is Guerilla Marketing? A few ordinary schmoes, no offense, have a casual conversation next to some guy about how great Snake Juice is. Next thing you know, that guy orders a whole bottle of Snake Juice, and he has no idea why! Now, Winter, you'll be playing a boring beer drinker named Jennifer."

Winter glared at Marrow, already over this whole meeting. 

"Qrow, you are also a boring beer drinker named Michael."

Qrow nodded his head, taking this whole thing seriously. 

"Klein, you'll be playing a boring beer drinker. Your name will be Klein."

Klein frowned at this and wondered why he was the only one who didn't get a fake name. 

"Ghira is going to play our exciting Snake Juice drinker...AKA Brian Thunder."

Ghira, like Winter, glared at Marrow. However, he was glaring mainly because he was starting to wonder if he regretted helping Marrow with his side project. 

Maria scoffed at the length of the script. She placed the packet down and turned to Marrow, unhappy with how much work he was making them do. "You want us to memorize this whole script?" Maria asked. 

Marrow waved her off, unfazed. "Ideally, but if you want to wing it, your talking points are 'high-end', 'VIP', 'lifestyle'. All right, let's run through it once. And...action!"

Everyone looked down to their packet and began reading. Klein started and, in a stiff, dull voice, said, "The weather has been so weird lately. Hey, let me buy you all a drink."

"I'll take something basic, like a beer," Winter said, not even putting the minimum amount of effort in sounding convincing. 

"Yeah, I'm pretty...boring," Qrow said, struggling with the page, "So I'll take a beer, too."

"Not me," Ghira said, "I want this night to get...kay-raz-zy?" Ghira looked up, not sure what Marrow meant by this line. 

"Ca-raeeeeee-zee," Marrow said, "Like ca-raeeeee-zee." He emphasized 'rae' with his hands, making Ghira frown at him. At first, he was wondering if he was regretting helping Marrow. Now, he was fully convinced this was a mistake. 

With a sigh, Ghira went back to his script and re-read the line. "I want this night to get ca-rae-zy. Get me a shot of Snake Juice. I hear it has a dope aftertaste."

Marrow clapped his hands and frowned. He didn't look too pleased with that run of his script. "All right, that's gonna be a cut," he said, looking directly at Ghira as he did, "Um, Ghira, you got to say it like you mean it."

Ghira sighed again, feeling as if a vein in his head was going to pop out of annoyance.

* * *

GHIRA'S POV

"I won't publicly endorse a product unless I use it exclusively and I really believe in it. My only official recommendations are Atlesian Army-issued mustache trimmers, Morton's Salt, and the C.R. Laurence Fein two-inch, axe-style scraper oscillating knife blade."

* * *

Setting: City Manager's office 

After their short, impromptu race (Ren won, much to Nora's mild annoyance), both Nora and Ren were sitting in City Manager Jaune Arc's office, ready to hear what he had planned for them. Jaune, despite usually being cheerful and happy, was a lot more calm and toned down. For Nora, this could only mean one thing; he was going to give out bad news. 

"We need to find a new PR Director for the Health Department," Jaune reluctantly said, "Bart Oobleck was fired today."

Nora and Ren looked at each other, surprised to hear that a high-ranking government official was let go. They then turned back to Jaune and Ren asked, "Why?"

"Well, short answer...he went bananas. Long answer...his wife, Jan, had an affair, gave him a venereal disease, and so he put signs about her all through City Hall. I'm sure you've seen them."

Nora and Ren cringed as they recalled all the...questionable signs they had seen from the Health Department recently. "Oh, yeah," they both said, now not surprised why Oobleck was let go. 

* * *

JAUNE'S POV 

_Jaune starts going through all of Bart Oobleck's posters, holding each one up to the interviewer._

"Jan Oobleck will give you chlamydia...brought to you by the City of Vale Health Department."

"Chlamydia affects nearly 100% of Jan Ooblecks."

"The department of health congratulates Jan Oobleck...Miss Chlamydia."

"Jan, I love you. Please come back. I realize that I'm not blameless here. Please. Brought to you by the Health Department." _Jaune frowns as he holds up the sign to the interviewer, feeling sorry for Oobleck._

"Re-elect Jan Oobleck...Mayor of Whoreville."

* * *

"Nora, I want you to help us choose a replacement," Jaune said, "Parks and Health work closely on outdoor programs and exercise initiatives-"

As Jaune droned on about all the technical details concerning the health department, Nora suddenly got an idea. She smiled as she realized who could take over Bart's spot.

_Hang on...health department. The head of the department should probably be someone with experience working in a hospital. Doesn't have to be a doctor, just someone who understands the inner workings of a hospital. And...my best friend is a nurse, so..._

"Pyrrha should do it!" Nora chirped, cutting Jaune off.

Jaune smiled, already excited about who Nora suggested. "Pyrrha Nikos?" he said, pointing finger guns at Nora as he did. Even though Pyrrha was his ex-girlfriend, he always saw her as a competent nurse and was open to working with her. 

Nora nodded her head, pointing finger guns at him back. 

* * *

Setting: Saint Ozma Hospital

As soon as Nora finished her shift at the office, she went straight to Saint Ozma Hospital in order to meet with Pyrrha. She was practically bouncing as she made her way to the ER, already imagining Pyrrha's smile when she told her the good news. When Pyrrha saw Nora come in, part of her was just hoping that the reason why Nora was visiting didn't involve her doing anything crazy. She didn't want a repeat of the time they went canvassing and unintentionally pissed off the public. 

"Vale is looking for a new PR Director for the Health Department, and I submitted your name," Nora said, beaming. Pyrrha's jaw dropped; the news wasn't technically crazy but this was still a big deal. "You have an interview tomorrow at 9:00 A.M."

And just like that, Pyrrha frowned. "9:00 A.M., wow," she said, trying to hide the fact that she was not looking forward to waking up so early. "Just...wow! I'm...so thrilled-"

"Yes, I know!" Nora said, failing to catch Pyrrha's sarcasm, "I couldn't get it earlier!"

"I'm...I am-"

"-Grateful! I know, you can thank me later. But first you need to go over your homework."

Just when Pyrrha thought it couldn't get any worse, Nora turned around and pulled in two dollies that were carrying binders upon binders of government paperwork. _This must be how Ozpin and Glynda feel when they complain about paperwork,_ Pyrrha thought as Nora held out a binder to her. She shuddered at the idea of having to study all this in one night. 

"These are all the health initiatives the city has ever undertaken since the 1960s," Nora said, unaware of how Pyrrha was reacting to the news, "So you need to partially memorize that. And it's gonna be a long night, so I got you some energy drinks and some chocolate-covered espresso beans...and the book 'Freedom' by Jonathan Franzen."

"Why am I reading this-"

"-Because I'm almost done with it, Pyrrha, and I want to talk to you about Patty!"

 _Nora, how am I supposed to read for fun when I don't even have enough time to do the required reading!_ Pyrrha held out her hand, stopping Nora from going any further. "Okay, deep breath," Pyrrha said, feeling overwhelmed by all of this. 

Nora, in typical Nora fashion, took in a short, quick breath. Pyrrha took in a deep breath and, at the same time, exhaled with Nora. She was hoping that the exhale would calm her nerves. It did not. 

"Okay, I've been a nurse for over 10 years," Pyrrha said, hoping this excuse could help her get out of the job interview, "It's not something you just quit."

Nora didn't seem fazed as she waved off Pyrrha's statement. "I understand," she said, still grinning, "I just think with this new job, you could make a difference. Make real change happen. Plus, we'd be working in the same building...no more lightning-round catch-up sessions!"

 _Well, when you put it like that,_ Pyrrha thought as she imagined the upsides of working for the government. It was something she never really considered doing, even before she met Nora. "It would be nice to have an office," she said as she found herself a bit more receptive to the new job opportunity. 

"This is your destiny, Pyrrha! You don't want to waste away at Vale Saint Ozma Medical Center and turn into...her!" Nora then pointed behind Pyrrha. Pyrrha turned around and, sure enough, she saw a fellow nurse moving a man in a wheelchair. The nurse accidentally bumped into the wall, causing the man to yell out in pain. Instead of comforting him or checking to see if he suffered an injury, the nurse instead rudely told the man to 'shut up' before moving him away from the area. Pyrrha could only frown at the poor bedside manners on display right before her eyes. 

Nora nodded her head, sincere in not wanting to see her best friend turn into that rude nurse. "And let's be honest, it would be nice to not have to pull strange things out of people's butts every night."

 _Here we go again._ "You've mentioned that before," Pyrrha groaned, not wanting to explain this again, "That doesn't happen that often."

"It happened once."

"Just once!"

"...that already is too many times."

* * *

Setting: Qrow's shoe-shining booth, City Hall 

To prepare for tonight's guerilla marketing session at the Snake Hole Lounge, Qrow and Winter were busy reading the scripts that Marrow had given them. Not much had changed since their previous meeting with Marrow; Winter was still not onboard with this project while Qrow was reading diligently, desperately not wanting to get on Marrow's bad side. 

"Ugh," Winter groaned as she flipped the page on her script, "I hate talking...to people...about things. This is a nightmare. Ugh. I'm grouchy."

"Well, we have to support Marrow," Qrow said as he placed his script down to look at Winter, "I don't want to end up on that done-zo list! Here...think about it as role-playing. That makes it...sexy."

Qrow stared at Winter, hoping that was enough to cheer her up. Winter looked at Qrow and, slowly, her frown turned into a smile. After the disastrous meeting from earlier, this was the best thing she had heard all day. "That could be fun," she said, already planning ahead.

Qrow chuckled, surprised that somehow worked. "Ha! Really?"

"Can I use a weird voice and try to freak people out?"

"Yes!"

At that, Winter stood up to leave, eager to go home and get ready for tonight. "Okay. Then, uh, next time you see me...I'll be a stranger." As she walked away, she seductively ran her hand down Qrow's face to his chest. She then winked at him before leaving his sight.

Qrow was grinning wildly at that. _Oh, this is gonna be SO much fun! Role-playing with my super-hot girlfriend, what could go wrong! This is TOTALLY normal!_

* * *

Setting: Junior's Nightclub (also known as the "Snake Hole Lounge")

Time: Night 

The club was in full swing as bottles of Marrow's Snake Juice was passed around by the patrons. Marrow watched as giggling clubgoers clinked their shot glasses and downed his alcohol, apparently enjoying it. Which was good for him, especially considering that Junior Xiong was giving him the stink-eye. 

Marrow gulped as Junior approached him. "Hey, Marrow," Junior said, his tone passive-aggressive, "I'm really hoping this booze of yours is gonna sell...because I am not going to take a loss on this." Junior's emphasis on 'loss' was starting to make Marrow feel nervous. Although he was grateful that Junior trusted in him enough to sell his alcohol, Marrow also knew he was solely to blame if the drink flopped with the club patrons. 

"Nothing this delicious will fail," Marrow said, mustering enough confidence to hopefully convince Junior. 

Junior huffed, still wary of Marrow. "We'll see. Check back with me in a couple hours. I'll let you know how it's going." Junior then walked away to help his bartenders, Melanie and Miltia Malachite, who were busy handing out bottles of Snake Juice. 

As Marrow watched Junior leave, he heard a familiar voice from behind him. "Oh, Snake Juice!" Nora shouted as she walked towards Marrow. Her acting left much to be desired as she somehow came off stiffer than a wooden board. "What?! Here?! High-end! VIP! Exclusive!"

Marrow mentally facepalmed himself. _This is why you should've attended my guerilla marketing meeting, Nora! Even Klein acted better than you! Well...okay, that may be overexaggerating things, Klein was still the worst._

"Hey, how's it going?" Nora asked as she reached Marrow.

Marrow just shrugged, not wanting to tell her about how Junior basically threatened his life if Snake Juice wasn't successful. "I think it's going okay," he said, suddenly not confident, "People better buy this stuff, or else I'm gonna be screwed."

Despite how nervous Marrow looked, Nora waved him off, thinking that he was overreacting. "It's gonna be fine. People will definitely buy it-"

Nora stopped when she felt someone sneak up from behind her. She turned to her left...and internally groaned when she saw that it was resident douchebag Neptune Vasilias. _No,_ Nora thought to herself, _oh no...why him? Why is here? Anybody but him right now-_

"Uh-oh, uh-oh!" Neptune shouted, clearly a bit tipsy, "♪ It's 'NO' to the 'RA' to the 'VAL-KY-RIE', she's the dopest little shorty in all Vale City, Kingdom of Vale ♪"

"Why didn't you just stop at 'City'?" Marrow snapped. 

Neptune, who was too focused on undressing Nora with his eyes, didn't pick up on what Marrow Amin said. He then stepped up to Nora, his shit-eating grin full-on display. "Nora Valkyrie...seriously, you get sexier every day. And that is not a line. That is for real."

 _Ugh, just kill me now._ Nora, unamused by his antics, put on her best fake smile. "Aw, Neptune," she said, trying her best not to punch the man, "So...you're here helping Marrow?"

"Absolutely! And it's time to get that paper."

Then, simultaneously with Marrow: "♪ Get--get--get--get--get get that PAPER! ♪"

"Snake Juice sales are gonna be off the 'cherts'," Neptune continued, "Why? Because that 'snizz' is straight-up 'deloyshus'." 

Nora sighed, even more annoyed than before. She wanted to say something to him but she was so used to Neptune disappointing her that she didn't bother. So, she opted with just saying, "Well said." 

Turning to Marrow, Nora said, "Well, I-I know tonight's gonna be a big success, and I wish I could stay. I really do, but I have to go help Pyrrha. She's gonna be up all night cramming for a big job interview."

Marrow smirked at that, confusing Nora. "She might be up all night...but I think someone else is gonna be doing the cramming."

"Uh-oh!" Neptune shouted as he high-fived Marrow.

Nora frowned. _Huh? What does he mean by that?_ As she turned to the dancefloor, she got her answer when she saw Pyrrha Nikos, dancing her ass off and very clearly not at home studying for her job interview. 

* * *

Time: A few minutes later...

Pyrrha Nikos made her way to the lounge area, already slightly tipsy and tired from dancing. As she caught her breath, she looked up and saw that Nora Valkyrie was approaching her. She smiled, surprised to see Nora here. 

"Hey!" Pyrrha said as Nora took a seat in front of her.

"Hey," Nora replied, sounding not as enthusiastic as Pyrrha. For once, she was the one with seemingly lesser energy. 

"I'm so happy to see you!"

"Yeah, and I'm...seeing...you here."

"Yes!"

"Yes, I'm...surprised. I thought maybe you'd be home preparing for tomorrow."

Pyrrha grimaced as she recalled all the binders that Nora had dumped on her from earlier. "Oh, well, there was way too much stuff for me to read tonight, anyway," she sheepishly said, "I mean, it was a ridiculous amount of stuff that you gave me."

Nora was unamused by that answer. After all the work she put in collecting and organizing those binders, it was disappointing to hear that Pyrrha wasn't even going to read them all. "Oh...but you are going in for the interview tomorrow?"

"Um...I think so?"

Pyrrha cringed when she saw Nora's reaction to her. _Shit! Poor choice of words, Nikos! This is Nora you're talking to, you should've just said yes!_

Nora wasn't faring any better. _You think so?! YOU THINK SO?! Oh lord, I thought she'd be excited for this opportunity! What went wrong?!_

Feeling the awkward tension in the air, both Nora and Pyrrha reached forward, grabbed a shot of Snake Juice, and downed their drinks. As the alcohol started to kick in, another familiar sight came by to join them. Nora groaned; she had just gotten away from a douchebag, now another one was joining them. 

"Uh-oh!" Mercury Black said as he sat next to Pyrrha, "Is there enough room for some mayonnaise in this lady sandwich?"

Nora frowned. "Oh," she said, disappointed. It was this guy, the annoying shock jock, morning radio show host. The one who harassed Lie Ren about his failed tenure as the teen mayor of his hometown of Kuroyuri. Although it was nothing personal, Nora still hated the fact that Mercury exploited Ren's past for views and content. And here he was...with Pyrrha. 

Surprisingly, Pyrrha reached out to touch Mercury's arm. Nora couldn't believe it; Mercury Black, of all people, was her date for tonight. "Nora, this is my friend, Mercury Black," Pyrrha said, confirming Nora's suspicions. 

"Oh, please," Mercury said with a smirk, "Call me 'The Douche'. You probably know me from my morning radio show on 93.7...Crazy Emerald and 'The Douche'."

 _Of course I remember you, you dingus! You insulted Ren and made him look like an idiot!_ "Yeah, I-I have met you before," Nora said, trying to put on a fake smile to hide her discomfort, "I actually was on your show once-"

"-wait! Were you on the show where we had that stripper do math? Classic, right?"

Nora sighed. She wanted to break something, anything (Mercury's legs were definitely a tempting target). Instead, she opted to just down the rest of her Snake Juice, hoping she could knock herself out from the alcohol. 

* * *

Setting: Dancefloor, away from Nora, Pyrrha, and Mercury 

As planned, Qrow Branwen was "role-playing" for tonight alongside Winter. It took him awhile to decide which character he would go as. He had several options; action star, hitchhiker, White Fang deserter who fell in love with a human woman. Instead, he opted for 'Atlas Ace Operative'. To sell the part, he even came to the nightclub in full Ace Ops gear. Luckily, no one noticed...save for a few patrons who actually came from the Kingdom of Atlas and immediately recognized his suit. Those patrons were either confused as hell or decided to let it go since some military servicemen did go out in public with their uniforms. 

After looking around the club, he spotted Winter at the bar. Approaching her, Qrow saw that she was also in costume. She decided to ditch her normal white clothes and went with all-black. She was even wearing a black bonnet. It looked she was about to go to a funeral. But then, Qrow noticed she was holding a cigarette holder in one hand. With that, she looked like a character straight out of a film noir or a gothic novel. _So far, so good,_ Qrow thought to himself. He cleared his throat, catching Winter's attention. 

"Hello, strange person who I have never met before," Qrow said, trying to get into character, "Who are you?"

Winter turned to him, clearly enjoying this role-playing session a little too much. "I'm Janet Snakehole," she said, putting on a fake posh accent for her character, "I'm a very rich widow with a terrible secret. Who are you?"

"Bert Macklin, Ace Ops. I was the best damn agent they had until I was framed for a crime I didn't commit...stealing the monarch's rubies. Now I work alone."

Winter let out a fake surprised gasp. She then held out her hand, which Qrow took to shake. "Lovely to meet you."

"I got to admit," Qrow said, breaking character, "Uh...I thought your costume would maybe be a little bit sluttier."

 **SLAP! "** How dare you?" Winter yelled in fake outrage. She smiled as she walked away, leaving Qrow to process what just happened.

Despite being slapped in the face, Qrow giggled. "Nice!" he said. Just like Winter, he was having a bit too much fun with the role-playing. 

* * *

Setting: Bar, back to Marrow and Neptune 

Ghira Belladonna, although he regretted his choice to help Marrow with his side project, decided to come to the Snake Hole Lounge anyways. He didn't like the plan but he made a promise to help. And, being a man of honor (it was part of his "libertarian code"), he came by to honor that promise. 

"Gentlemen," Ghira said as he approached Marrow and Neptune by the bar. 

Neptune smirked, happy to see the big guy out of the office. "Bella-bro-na, how you living?" he said

Ghira frowned. _Oh...it's this idiot again. This night just keeps getting better and better._ "Yes," he said, not sure how else to respond to Neptune. 

Marrow looked down at Ghira's hands and immediately noticed he wasn't drinking Snake Juice. The liquid was too dark, clearly being one of Ghira's whiskeys that he was fond of. "Why aren't you holding a Snake Juice?" Marrow asked. 

"I'm more of a whiskey man," Ghira responded. 

Neptune frowned, then began gesturing for Ghira to approach him. "Ghi-Ghi, come here. Can I call you Ghi? Come here for a bit."

Ghira simply glared at Neptune.

"Okay, you're good right there. Listen, you got to jump on the Marrowtown Express. This guy has some of the best investment ideas I've ever heard in my life."

* * *

MARROW'S POV

"Make a baby tuxedo clothing line."

"A department store...with a guest list."

"White fur ear muffs...for men."

"A new brand of bottled water called...H2-Hoe."

"Contact lenses that display text messages."

"Invent a phone...that smells good."

"Own a night club called 'Eclipse'...that's only open for one hour, two times a year. Cover charge...$5,000. I can keep going!"

* * *

"How about this, Ghira?" Marrow said as he poured Ghira a glass of Snake Juice, "Try Snake Juice. If you like it, you got to talk it up all night. If you don't...I'll shave Neptune's head."

Although Ghira was still skeptical over Marrow's alcohol, he was not about to pass up an opportunity to humiliate the blue-haired douche. "Yeah, I'd like to see that, hit me up," he said as he took the glass from Marrow. Marrow held his breath as Ghira took a sip of Snake Juice. (Neptune: "...a lot riding on this.")

It took a few seconds for Ghira to process the taste. As the alcohol went down, he turned to Marrow and, without smiling or changing his tone, he said, "Damn, if that isn't delicious."

Neptune cheered, mostly because his hair would be left intact. "Oh! ♪ 'GHI' to the 'RA' to the 'BEL-LA-DON-NA-NA-NA', I say Ghira's got swagger the size of Anima, the continent ♪"

Marrow facepalmed. "Dude, you got to end it on the rhyme-"

"-look, I know what I have to do-"

"You had it at 'Anima'-"

"-I know, I got it!"

* * *

Back to Qrow and Winter...

As the night wore on, Qrow and Winter were starting to feel the effects of the Snake Juice. While Qrow was out and about, prowling the club for 'criminals', Winter was chatting up two random patrons. She had just told them that she was related to the owner of the Snake Hole Lounge and that she was here on "business". What business was that, Winter wasn't quite sure. The alcohol was making it hard to come up with a fake story.

Winter took another shot of Snake Juice, then turned to the two patrons. "You think I haven't been around the world?" she said, improvising another story. She paused for a second when she felt the alcohol kick in, making the room feel like it was turning. "I've been everywhere, darling. I'm a very wealthy woman. My husband's kept me in the finest clothes, directly given to him by the great Coco Adel, you see-"

"-Freeze! Ace Ops!" Winter and the two guests were caught off-guard when Qrow rushed in, pointing his 'gun' at Winter. Although Winter acted in 'surprise' at the sight of the 'gun', the two guests just stared at Qrow, wondering why he was pointing his fingers at the supposed daughter of Junior Xiong.

Junior's white-haired, previously unknown daughter who didn't even share the same eye color with him and somehow had direct access to designer clothing made by the great fashion designer Coco Adel. The two patrons felt that something was off here. 

Winter began to 'panic' and raised her hands to surrender. She resisted the urge to smile, not wanting to break character. "No!" she yelled, "Leave me alone!"

"Hands in the air!"

"I didn't kill anybody! And I didn't burn down the mill either, my sister did! But now she's been eaten by wolves!" Winter then started to fake cry and chucked her shot glass to the ground, actually breaking it. The two guests, who were completely confused as to what was going on, decided to just walk away, not even bothering to ask Qrow any questions. 

"Nothing to see here," Qrow said into his imaginary walkie-talkie. As he did, Winter crawled away, hoping to 'get away' from the Ace Ops agent that was trying to arrest her. As she crawled away, she was already coming up with the scenario for her next encounter with Qrow. 

* * *

Back to Nora, Pyrrha, and Mercury...

Pyrrha and Mercury were bumping along to the music playing in the club, the alcohol clearly starting to affect them. Nora, who was a few drinks behind the both of them, could feel her eyes twitching in annoyance. She still couldn't believe that Pyrrha was acting this irresponsibly, especially after the favor she had pulled for her. And...she went on a date with Mercury "The Douche" Black! At this point, Nora was starting to wonder if Pyrrha had been replaced by a robot or something. 

"So how did you two meet?" Nora asked, not wanting to probe too hard and piss Pyrrha off.

Pyrrha stopped moving to the beat and turned to Nora. "We met at the supermarket," she said with a smile. 

"I used my classic pickup line," Mercury said as he turned to Nora, "If you're looking for douches, they're in aisle me." He chuckled, congratulating himself on coming up with that line.

Nora chuckled back, but it was more out of thinly-disguised disgust. _Oh great, not only is Pyrrha being irresponsible, she's also lowering her standards,_ Nora thought to herself. "Well, that's...awesome," she said, maintaining her fake smile.

"Hell yeah, it is awesome," Mercury replied back as he sat back in his chair. 

"Oh, hey," Pyrrha said, suddenly remembering her conversation with Nora from earlier that day, "by the way, I don't think I can get that book back from...um...what's-her-name."

Nora dropped her smile. She had been tolerating Pyrrha's behavior all night...and yet, somehow, it was the fact that she wouldn't be getting one of her books back from some rando that Pyrrha dated that finally pushed Nora over the line. "Oh, that's okay," Nora said, passive-aggressively, "I mean, I should've known better than to loan something to one of your casual partners. They come and go so fast."

Pyrrha frowned, not liking Nora's tone and what she seemed to be implying about her. "Uh, what are you saying exactly?" Pyrrha asked, also passive-aggressively. 

"Well, I mean, let's be honest. How long is it gonna last with this guy?"

Mercury frowned. He wasn't doing anything and yet, he got roped into this conversation. "Uh...sitting right here," he said. 

"I don't know," Pyrrha said, ignoring Mercury for a second, "He's dumb...but he's fun."

"Thank you!" Mercury said, nodding his head in agreement. 

"I mean, that's the whole point of dating around. It's so you get to try on a bunch of different hats."

"Well, this hat is an idiot," Nora said bluntly. (Mercury: "Ha ha! Classic!")

"Nora...are you mad that I came here?"

"What? No, I'm not...are you...you seem mad at me."

"No, I'm not...I'm not mad at you-"

"-I'm not mad at you-"

"-I'm not mad at all-"

"-Neither am I."

"No!"

The two stopped talking. There was a shift in the air as both Nora and Pyrrha suddenly felt uncomfortable being around each other. The silence was so unbearable that, just a few seconds after they stopped talking, they both grabbed their shot glasses of Snake Juice and downed them in one gulp. The alcohol helped...somewhat. At the same time, it was starting to cloud their judgment. 

Mercury grinned. He had no idea what was going on but he did enjoy himself a cat fight. "Looks like you two need to kiss and make up," he sneered. 

Nora sighed, too tired and tipsy to be annoyed at Mercury. "All right," she said, turning away from the silver-haired creep. It didn't help that Mercury made the sound of a cat meowing right after. He really wanted to see this cat fight actually happen, even if he had no context as to why they were fighting. 

* * *

Back to Ghira, Marrow, and Neptune...

As per his promise to Marrow Amin, Ghira Belladonna grabbed a bottle of Snake Juice and began wandering around the club to hype it up to the club patrons. It didn't take him long to find a target; Shay D. Mann, one of Junior's regulars. He was here tonight with a date. 

"Hello," Ghira said, catching Shay's attention, "My name is Ghira Belladonna. In general, I try never to speak with people, but I have been drinking this Snake Juice thing, and it's damn good. You should buy it."

Shay raised an eyebrow. He was confused as to why the lead director at the parks and recreation department was approaching him, trying to get him to buy alcohol. "Yeah, okay," he said, unsure if this was an elaborate prank or something, "Thanks, man."

"Son, you should know that my recommendation is essentially a guarantee. Drink this...now."

At that, Ghira poured Shay a glass of Snake Juice and placed it in the man's hand. Shay, still confused, took the glass anyways.

As Shay drank the Snake Juice (Shay: "Whoa, that's strong!"), Marrow watched with glee as more and more people began buying his alcohol. Despite feeling nervous earlier, he was relieved that Snake Juice turned out to be a success. Just then, Marrow noticed Jaune Arc coming into the club. He was the last person he'd expect to come by the Snake Hole Lounge, but it was still nice to see him. 

"Hey, hey, hey, Jaune Cutty-Sarc!" Marrow said, catching Jaune's attention, "You made it!"

Jaune approached Marrow, his face in a deep frown. Marrow wasn't sure why he looked so upset but he decided to ignore it. "Yeah, I got your email," Jaune said as he took a seat next to Marrow at the bar, "We need to talk."

"First off, though, try a little Snake Juice. It's 140 proof, which means it's 70% alcohol. But don't worry. There's plenty caffeine in it to keep you awake."

Jaune's frown somehow grew upon hearing that. "I believe an ounce of that...would literally kill me. Anyways, Marrow...you emailed everyone at City Hall...and told them to come to a club that you own...to buy alcohol that you invented. Government employees can't use their power to enhance their personal wealth."

 _Oh...crap, that was in the employee handbook,_ Marrow thought to himself. He cringed as he suddenly realized the real reason why Jaune was here. It wasn't to help him out, it was to reprimand him. And then he realized just how stupid he was, thinking that Jaune Arc would come by the Snake Hole Lounge for fun. This was the guy who exercised all the time and wanted everyone to go vegan. There was no way he was here to enjoy himself. Realizing just how bad this could get, Marrow turned to Jaune, hoping he could salvage his position and just get a slap on the wrist. "Okay, I totally get your point, Jaune. It won't happen again."

Much to Marrow's dismay, Jaune shook his head. "I just don't see any way around it. You're gonna have to sell your shares in the Snake Hole."

"Nooooo!" Marrow's face dropped upon hearing what his punishment would be. Although he could live without the shares, this was one of the few business opportunities he had that didn't immediately blow up in his face. And yet, he somehow found a way to blow the deal up anyways.

As Marrow processed the bad news, Neptune Vasilias showed up from behind him. He didn't look too happy to see Jaune, although it was mainly because he didn't like seeing Marrow unhappy. "Marley Marl, this guy bothering you?" Neptune said, trying to look as tough as possible. 

"This is my boss," Marrow said.

Upon hearing that, Neptune calmed down. "Okay, yeah. You want me to write a rap about your name?"

Jaune Arc just stared at Neptune, not sure what to think of this man. Feeling that it wouldn't hurt to humor the guy, he said, "Yes."

And just like that, Neptune jumped into another rap. "♪ 'B' to the 'o' to the double 's', do what he say, and you'll be success...ful ♪"

 _Goddamn it, again?_ Marrow facepalmed as, once again, Neptune flubbed the rap.

Neptune, also realizing he messed up, leaned his head back in embarrassment. He hated the fact he was 0-3 for successful raps this night. 

* * *

Back to Nora, Pyrrha, and Mercury...

Mercury had left Nora and Pyrrha to get some more shots of Snake Juice. Unfortunately for him, he picked the wrong moment to leave since the cat fight he wanted to see had just started. After a couple of shots of Snake Juice, whatever passive-aggression that was there between Nora and Pyrrha had vanished. Since neither of them were thinking straight, both of them went into full-on anger mode. 

"No offense!" Pyrrha yelled, her speech incredibly slurred, "But maybe you think I'm going too fast because you're going too slow with Ren!"

"No offense!" Nora yelled back, struggling to stay focused on her argument, "But I'm going slow because I might lose my job!"

"Okay, no offense, but maybe that's a little bit of an excuse for not acting on your feelings!"

"No offense, but I don't remember you having a nursing degree in feelings!"

"Offense! That's rude! I'm gonna go dance!" Just as Pyrrha stood up (almost tripping on her chair as she did), Mercury Black arrived with two shots of Snake Juice in his hands. "Douche, you're up!" Pyrrha shouted at Mercury as she snatched one of his shots and downed the alcohol in one gulp.

Mercury didn't know what to say. Although he had no idea what happened while he was gone, he decided to not question Pyrrha as she dragged him to the dancefloor. He managed to down his other shot of Snake Juice just as Pyrrha pulled him away from Nora. 

As Mercury and Pyrrha began dancing away, Lie Ren arrived. He looked concerned, unhappy that Nora looked so distressed. If it weren't for the fact that she was drunk and pissed at Pyrrha, Nora would think he was cute for being concerned for her. 

"Hey, are you okay?" Ren asked, "I heard yelling."

Nora stood up (almost tripping on her chair as well). "Yeah, I'm very angry, and I'm really drunk," she blurted out, catching Ren off-guard, "Do you want to dance with me? Go get me another 'snork-juice'!"

"Oh, that's maybe not the best idea for you-"

"-Forget it! Neptune!"

As if he was just waiting for his name to be called, Neptune Vasilias walked into the scene. "Yes, I'm here," he said, eager to know why he was being called.

"Dance up on me," Nora said without hesitation. Yes, it was Neptune, but she was too drunk to care. 

Neptune's eyes widened and he started smiling like an idiot. "Yes, yes, yes!" he yelled as he followed Nora to the dancefloor. As they made their way to the dancefloor, Nora swiped a shot of Snake Juice from another table (Yang Xiao Long: "Hey, what the hell Nora, that was mine!"). She downed the shot in one gulp, then slammed the glass on another table. 

Nora then started dancing...uncomfortably close to where Pyrrha Nikos was. As they danced, they couldn't help but glare at each other, even as Mercury and Neptune danced happily behind them. For the two men, they were just happy to be dancing with someone. 

* * *

Back to Lie Ren...

As Nora danced away, Ren found a place to sit down where he could be by himself. He took a sip of some Snake Juice as he pondered what just happened with Nora. 

_Is she angry with me,_ Ren thought to himself, _Or maybe she's angry at Pyrrha. Damn it, Ren, don't overthink things. Besides, she's just a co-worker, you're not supposed to be getting involved in her personal life like that-_

"-How's it going with her?" 

Ren's train of thought was broken when he saw Qrow Branwen standing by him. He had a glass of Snake Juice in his hands and, judging by how red his face was, this was definitely not his first drink of the night. Confusingly enough, Qrow was wearing an Ace Ops uniform, even though he had never served in Atlas. Knowing just how weird Qrow (and Winter, to an extent) was, he decided not to question him on the suit.

"Uh, well," Ren started, still keeping his eyes on Nora, "Nothing's going at all, really, because the...I don't know. I feel like I just did something wrong. She didn't seem to want to talk to me." 

"You should try role-playing," Qrow said, "That's what me and Winter do."

"Huh...that explains the outfits." _Well...that's one mystery solved. Hoo...ray?_

"Yeah, you got to dream up some weird scenario," Qrow continued, "Like you're her boss and sex is forbidden because she works for you."

Ren just stared at Qrow. He wasn't sure if the man was either just that stupid or if he was purposely kept out of the loop when it came to their friend circle. "That is our actual situation," Ren said. 

Qrow held his hand up, as if he had something else to add to the story. Ren didn't want to humor him but, out of curiosity, he leaned in to hear what else Qrow had to say. "And," he said, "She's addicted to spanking!" 

_Okay, that wasn't helpful at all. Thanks a lot, Qrow._ Ren rolled his eyes and sat back in his chair. "Okay, thanks," he said, sarcastically, "We got it. We're good." 

* * *

Back to Nora and Pyrrha...

The night just seemed to keep getting worse and worse. After getting tired from dancing, Nora and Pyrrha retreated to the bathroom area to continue their argument from earlier. However, they had gotten even more drunk than before. Now, it was hard for either of them to even speak due to how angry they were at each other and how slurred their words were.

"If you're worried about working with Jaune," Nora said, struggling to get the words out, "It doesn't matter! He's...he's fine with it! He said it wouldn't be weird!"

"You talked to Jaune before you talked to me!" Pyrrha shouted, just as drunk as Nora. 

Before Nora could respond, Yang Xiao Long, who was exiting the restroom, walked in between Nora and Pyrrha. Since her mind was just gone, Nora suddenly felt angry at Yang for no reason. 

"Excuse me, Yang!" Nora shouted at her. Yang, who had no idea what was going on, just walked away. She made a mental note to herself to put Nora on blast on Tweeter later on the night. 

* * *

NORA'S POV

"This is my first fight with Pyrrha...and it's a doozy. But I believe that honest discussions between friends can lead to deeper intimacy. This is a watershed moment in our relationship, and it's important that we fight clean. All I need to do is focus...and stay calm."

* * *

"YOU'RE STUPID, AND YOU'RE DRUNK, AND YOU'RE STUPID!" Due to how much Snake Juice that Nora had drank, she barely registered what she was saying as she stumbled into the ladies restroom. Pyrrha, angry at what Nora had just yelled at her face, followed her inside.

"Oh!" Pyrrha huffed as she confronted Nora, "I don't understand how this is my fault-"

"-It's not...everything isn't your fault all the time. Don't always make everything your fault-"

"-Good! It's not all my fault. I'm not the stupid jerk! I'm not the one who's being a stupid jerk right now-"

"-I didn't mean it like that! You know I didn't mean it like that. I just meant you were being stupid, and you were acting like a jerk! Look, I'm sorry that I thought about you for the job, okay? But sometimes if I don't push you in the right direction, you end up standing still. I was just trying to do you a favor-"

"-Enough with your favors, okay?! Stop!"

That stung Nora. She honestly thought that Pyrrha loved the favors she was pulling for her, that was how she expressed her friendship. It sucked to hear that she may have been in the wrong here. "...well, maybe we shouldn't work together, then."

Pyrrha didn't answer at first. But then, still pissed off at Nora and too drunk to think straight, Pyrrha said, "Maybe we shouldn't." 

At that, Pyrrha stormed out of the restroom. She didn't want to be anywhere near Nora right now. As for Nora, all she could do was watch Pyrrha leave...and try to hold herself together as she wondered how this night ended up being ruined completely. Of course, neither woman could think straight due to all the alcohol they had consumed, but they were at least aware enough to realize that they had both messed up.

* * *

Back to Jaune Arc...

After telling Marrow Amin the bad news, the man had walked off and began drinking away to dull his senses. Although Jaune didn't like what Marrow was doing to deal with the news, he understood that he had just essentially crushed one of Marrow's more lucrative business opportunities. He decided to leave Marrow alone and let him deal with his troubles. 

Although he was planning on leaving the club, he stayed when he bumped into Maria Calavera. Surprisingly, she was the only other person he encountered who was not drunk off of the Snake Juice. When Jaune asked why she wasn't drinking, his eyes lit up in excitement when Maria said it was because she was on a cleanse. 

To most people, cleanses were something they did because they wanted to improve their body. For Jaune...cleanses were part of his everyday routine. 

"Every time I cleanse, I can literally feel the toxins leaving my body!" Jaune said, happily. 

"I know!" Maria answered back, "I feel so much healthier. I've still got a full week to go before the broth stage."

"Mmm! Pre-broth...is an amazing stage! It's when you're most alert."

"Good. Someone needs to be alert tonight. This Snake Juice...is basically rat poison. Everybody's wasted."

* * *

NORA'S POV

_Nora is crying, although she is also very clearly wasted from the Snake Juice. Her speech is beyond slurred at this point._

"You don't even know one thing! I didn't even say one thing! And then she asked me the whole thing, and I didn't even do it once!"

* * *

MARROW'S POV

_Marrow's cross-eyed and is almost stumbling over, clearly drunk as hell._

"I'm like an elephant, okay? If I walk into a room, it's like, okay, he's in there."

* * *

PYRRHA'S POV

_Pyrrha is drunk, her face bright red and her movements erratic._

"I'm not gonna tell you...that-that bitch over there!"

_Pyrrha points to a random woman who is sitting at the bar. The woman turns to the interviewer, confused as to why Pyrrha is pointing at her._

"I'm gonna-I'm gonna tell-I don't have to-I don't have to brag!"

* * *

REN'S POV

_Ren's face is bright red and he's giggling to himself, clearly wasted. He's not even looking at the camera most of the time, that's how out of it he looks._

"Ha...baba booey...yeah..."

* * *

QROW'S POV

_Qrow's eyes are closed as he rocks back-and-forth, completely drunk. He's trying to vibe along with the music in the background._

"Turn this music down!"

"♪Farts and poop and love and stuff...MA-CA-RO-NI, SA-LAAAAAD ♪"

* * *

WINTER'S POV

_Despite being drunk, Winter is oddly the most level-headed of her co-workers. Her movements are fine and she's facing the camera. It seems that she's the only one not affected by the Snake Juice._

_But then...she starts speaking. Everything coming out of her mouth is a steady stream of gibberish that vaguely sounds like some foreign language._

* * *

KLEIN'S POV

_Klein, who was staring right into the camera, slowly backs away. He then starts to laugh hysterically, clearly drunk off his mind. He then starts coughing loudly, only to drink more Snake Juice afterwards, which ends up making his coughing worse._

* * *

GHIRA'S POV

**♪ Ain't nothing wrong bringing the old me back, ♪**  
**♪ Little mamma knows my body so trophy glass, ♪**  
**♪ She worth it, bring me some Chloe bags ♪**

_Ghira, drunk as hell from the Snake Juice, is dancing wildly in the middle of the nightclub. He's wearing Winter Schnee's hat, which she had somehow lost._

* * *

Setting: Outside the Snake Hole Lounge, Maria Calavera's car 

It was a sad night as the club patrons began the long, miserable journey home. Maria could hardly contain her displeasure when she realized that she had to be the designated driver tonight. Jaune Arc, the only other sober person in the group, had already left with Mercury, Qrow, and Winter. That left Maria with Ghira, Ren, Nora, Marrow, Neptune, and Klein. Of course, there was Pyrrha, but she left on her own. 

Maria hopped into the driver's seat, pushing Ren away as she did. She then turned to her drunk passengers, hoping that they were at least sober enough to give her directions. 

"Is this everybody?" Ghira muttered, completely wasted. 

"Pyrrha took a cab," Maria said, "Marrow's in the trunk. Klein's on the roof. All right, where to first?"

"Your mother's butt," Nora blurted out. 

Maria sighed, even more disappointed than before. The rest of her passengers, however, weakly laughed at Nora's random comment. Ren, without realizing it, was the loudest. (Neptune: "...I'm so alone.")

"Hey, if even one of you thinks about dry heaving in my car," Maria snapped as she started driving, "you're all walking home."

Maria then pulled out of the parking lot. As she did, a club patron watched her drive away. The patron stared, wondering why there was a man strapped down on the roof of the car. 

* * *

Setting: Department of Parks and Recreation, Nora Valkyrie's office

Time: Morning, next day

It was a rough morning for the parks and recreation staff. Although the Snake Juice was an absolute hit among the club patrons, the direct consequence of all the additional ingredients that Marrow added was the biggest, worst hangover that anyone had ever experienced. Lie Ren could barely even move as he walked into Nora's office to tell her about their upcoming meetings with the health department PR director candidates. 

Not surprising Ren in the slightest, he saw Nora lying on the ground, face down. She was passed out behind her desk. 

"Nora," Ren muttered, not even liking the sound of his voice at the moment. 

Upon hearing her name, Nora woke up and immediately scrambled to her feet. She struggled a bit but managed to keep herself steady by holding onto her desk. For a brief second, she almost threw up from standing up too fast. "I'm here!" she said. 

"We have to go hire a new PR Director for the Health Department."

 _Oh right,_ Nora thought, _I forgot that was today._ "Oh, my God," she said out loud, "I'm so hungover. I've never been this hungover. Are we dead?"

"Well, I feel great. I ran 5k this morning."

"Really?"

"...no, I threw up in the shower."

Outside in the main office, aside from Maria since she didn't drink any of the Snake Juice, the rest of the staff was not faring any better. Klein Sieben looked like he was about to hurl at any moment while Winter Schnee tied two pillows to her ears to avoid getting a headache from how loud the room was. Not much was happening...until Ghira Belladonna walked into the office, looking as if he wasn't shit-faced drunk from the previous night. In fact, he had a smile on his face. It was as if the Snake Juice had an opposite effect on him; while everyone else was suffering the worst hangover of their lives, Ghira was acting like he just won the lottery. 

"Top of the morning, everyone!" Ghira said out loud. He was carrying two white bags, clearly from a fast food place based on the grease stains. "I brought some burgers and fries. Eat up! The protein soaks up the sugar."

Ghira rolled out the bag, letting the burgers onto the desk that Klein was sitting on. Klein groaned and leaned back in his chair. Although it was just the sound of the bag opening and the burgers rolling onto the table, in Klein's current state, they may as well have been nuclear bombs going off in his ears. 

Ghira then started whistling as he took a burger and walked over to his own office. "♪ First, you take the cow to the killing floor! ♪"

Nora and Ren just watched the man leave as he dug into his burger. Even though they had the job interviews to deal with, they were currently wondering how Ghira managed to overcome his hangover and if he could teach them how he did it. 

* * *

Setting: Conference room, health department section of City Hall

"Well, I am out of questions." "Thank you. We will let you know."

Nora and Ren had just finished their interview with one of the candidates for the PR director position. The candidate smiled and quietly shook hands with both Nora and Ren before exiting the room.

As soon as the door closed, both of them groaned. Ren grabbed his forehead as he was suffering from a headache while Nora closed her eyes since the sunlight was hurting her. 

"Then our heads will explode, and we will die," Ren moaned as he rubbed his temples. 

"Oh, God," Nora said, "Ugh...let this day end already." Part of it was from the pain of the hangover. The other part was when she recalled how she got here. The only reason she had drunk so much last night was because she was having that fight with Pyrrha. She couldn't remember most of the details of their fight but, at this point, it didn't matter. Whether if she was right or if Pyrrha was right, the main takeaway was that both of them were out of line. They were grown women and Nora cringed at just how...childish they acted.

"I cannot believe that fight I had with Pyrrha," Nora groaned. 

Ren looked at Nora. Although he wanted to breathe a sigh of relief that she wasn't angry at him last night, he chose not to since it would be inappropriate. "Look, I'm sure you guys can work it out," he said, trying to cheer her up.

"I owe her, like, a million apologies. I think I owe you one, too. I'm sorry."

"For what?"

"...I don't know."

"Are you okay?"

"No...I'm sad."

* * *

NORA'S POV

_Nora takes one of Bartholomew Oobleck's signs. She crosses out Jan Oobleck's name and writes in hers._ _When she steps back, the sign now says:_

_NORA, HOW COULD YOU?_

_Brought to you by the City of Vale Department of Public Health_

* * *

Back to Winter and Klein in the main office...

Although she was still hungover from last night, Winter could still register Klein approaching her to pick up a set of folders on her desk. Because she had so much fun last night role-playing with Qrow, she picked up her black bonnet that was lying by her computer and placed it on her head. 

_Janet Snakehole lives again!_ Winter smiled as she went into character. "Say, thanks, chum," she said to Klein in her fake posh accent. 

Unlike Qrow, Klein just rolled his eyes. "Ugh," he groaned as he fumbled over the folders. He was too hungover to deal with Winter right now. 

"I'll get those papers delivered for you."

"Whatever." Klein walked away, not even bothering to acknowledge Winter's Janet Snakehole character. 

Winter sighed, disappointed. "Posthaste," she muttered as she dropped her bonnet to the desk. 

* * *

Setting: Qrow's shoe-shining booth, City Hall 

Just like the parks and recreation crew, Qrow Branwen was suffering from the worst hangover he had experienced in a long while. He was barely even cleaning the shoes of his regular customer, Nadir Shiko. Nadir, although he knew something was off with Qrow, was too focused on telling his life story to the man. 

"The doctor says it's probably not serious," Nadir said, much to Qrow's annoyance, "but it might be-"

"-Oh, Nadir, please stop talking," Qrow muttered. 

As Qrow continued shining away, he saw Winter Schnee arrive from the corner of his eyes. He looked up and there she was, still wearing her Janet Snakehole hat from last night. She was even holding a pen in place of the cigarette holder. Although he was happy to see her, he was just not in the mood to role-play with her. 

"Uh, ring-a-ding-ding," she said, using her fake posh accent that she used for Janet, "Who's calling? Oh, is it Janet Snakehole? Why, yes it is. And who is she calling for? Mr. Bert Macklin. And-and, I'll t-tell you a-nother thing." At this point, Qrow wasn't sure if it was the hangover or if Winter was getting too deep into her character, but the next few words out of her mouth was nothing but gibberish. It sounded like she was trying to say something important but she completely lost track of the story. 

Suddenly, she said, "Going down the thing", leaving Qrow to wonder what part of the story led to that. 

But then, Winter kept going. Even though Qrow could make out what she was saying, it still sounded like nonsense. "We were going down the thing, and there you go, we were going real fast. And now who's this real sorry Charlie? This sad sack of potatoes?" 

Nadir frowned when he saw that Winter was pointing at him when she said 'sad sack of potatoes'. 

Before Winter could go any further, Qrow held up his hand, getting her to stop. "Oh, honey, please," he groaned, "I love you. No offense...but Bert Macklin died last night after the tenth shot of Snake Juice."

Winter frowned and immediately Qrow regretted telling her to stop. She was having so much fun and seeing her frown didn't sit right with him. "Okay," Winter muttered, dejectedly, "Sorry." She turned around to walk away. 

_Oh hell...come on Qrow, pull yourself together. Do it for your girl!_ "Miss Snakehole," Qrow said in his Bert Macklin voice. Winter turned around, a small smile on her face. "You think I'd let you get away that easily? Bert Macklin may be dead, but I'm his brother...Kip...Hackman."

"Why wouldn't you have his same last name?" Nadir Shiko said, butting his way into their role-playing routine. 

"Shut up, Nadir," Qrow snapped, not taking his eyes off of Winter, "I know you boosted those paintings."

"Maybe it was me," Winter said, going back into her Janet Snakehole voice, "but I'll never tell you where they are. And you'll never have my body either!" 

At that, Winter took off down the hall, almost tripping on a garbage can as she did. Qrow stood up to chase after her...only to sit back down when he realized he stood up too fast. He took a deep breath to ease his nerves and relieve his throbbing headache.

However, not only did that not work, he ended up vomiting all over Nadir Shiko's legs. 

* * *

Setting: Department of Parks and Recreation, Marrow Amin's office

The morning hasn't been good to Marrow, but for a different reason. He was still dealing with the fact that he lost all of his shares to the Snake Hole Lounge. Although he was at least going to make some money off of the Snake Juice sales, he actually lost overall profit from this side gig. Comforting him was Neptune Vasilias, who decided to come into City Hall just to talk about the Snake Hole Lounge. Although Neptune wasn't the best person to talk to when it came to being cheered up, Marrow was still happy to talk to a friend. 

"M, you don't even have to worry about a thing," Neptune said as he gripped what appeared to be a check, "You know why? Because I'm gonna keep those shares real tight for you. Real nice and cozy-like."

Marrow grabbed the check that Neptune was holding. Looking at it, he realized that this was from Junior Xiong for the Snake Juice sales. It was bittersweet to look at it; he somehow succeeded and failed at the same time. Frustrated, Marrow tossed the check aside. 

As Marrow sulked in his seat, Maria Calavera entered the room. Being the only other person in the department to have shares in the Snake Hole Lounge, she too was upset that Jaune essentially kicked Marrow out. "Sorry to hear the news, Marrow," Maria said, "We're gonna miss you around the club."

"Hey, you own shares, too!" Marrow pointed out, "Why didn't Jaune make you sell?!"

"Because Jaune doesn't know." Immediately, she turned to Neptune, confronting him directly. Neptune chuckled nervously, unsure why Maria was glaring at him. "You know what? Snitches...get stitches."

Neptune chuckled again. "Maria, come on-"

"-Don't." That was all Neptune had to hear. He immediately went silent, still feeling Maria's deadly glare on him. He only looked up when Maria left the room. 

Marrow groaned again. Although he hated that Maria got to keep her shares, he had to admit that she played it smart by not using her position to increase her wealth. Now that he had time to think it over, it dawned on him that he made a rookie mistake. It was written clear as day in the employee handbook that government workers were forbidden from using their government privileges for personal use. This made him feel even worse than before. 

"I'm a natural moneymaker," Marrow whined, "I got into government for the connections. This was supposed to be a thing that led to the other thing. It's like when Jack DeSena did 'All That'. That's what lead to him being Sokka and doing-"

"-The Dragon Prince." "The Dragon Prince," Neptune said, at the same time with Marrow. 

"Yeah, I know," Neptune continued, trying his best to cheer Marrow up, "Listen, I don't like all this negativity, man. Why don't you turn that frizz-own...upside-dizz-ity? Huh?"

"This sucks, man."

As Marrow continued to sulk away, even with Neptune doing his best to make him feel better about the whole situation, Ghira Belladonna watched their conversation from his own office. Despite how he felt about Marrow's side gig...he still respected that mindset of trying to build up a business. 

_Another entrepreneur...screwed over by big government._ Ghira sighed, unhappy at how Marrow was treated by the higher-ups. 

* * *

Setting: Pyrrha Nikos' house 

Although Lie Ren didn't want to get involved in the personal lives of his co-workers, he felt that he had to intervene in Nora and Pyrrha's feud. After seeing just how close these two were, he felt that he had to be the one to step in. Especially since it didn't seem like they were going to be on speaking terms for a while. 

Also, this clearly had nothing to do with the fact that Ren didn't like seeing Nora unhappy. He was absolutely not doing this to cheer her up and get her back on her feet. 

At Pyrrha's front door, Ren rang the doorbell. Pyrrha answered a few seconds later. Unsurprisingly, she looked like a hot mess. Her hair was all over the place and she still had some of the makeup on that she had from last night. She was holding a can of 'People Like Grapes' soda. 

"Ugh," Pyrrha groaned when she was hit by sunlight. 

"Um...you're wearing snow pants," Ren pointed out. There was absolutely no snow in Vale at this time. 

"I got home last night...and I thought I might go sledding."

Ren quickly turned around. How Pyrrha thought that there was snow on her yard when there was nothing there but grass and bushes was beyond him. Not wanting to embarrass her, Ren turned back to Pyrrha and asked, "Can I come in?"

"Yeah, if you're quiet," Pyrrha said. She then took a big swig of her soda before walking back into her house. 

"Okay."

As Ren closed the door behind him, Pyrrha plopped down onto her couch, groaning as she did. Ren frowned; the hangover was hitting Pyrrha a lot harder than the rest of the parks and rec staff. Although he didn't want to say it, he had a feeling that it was because she and Nora were drinking the Snake Juice like crazy, mainly because of their argument. 

"Uh," Ren started, hoping he wasn't too loud for Pyrrha, "Nora doesn't know I'm here-"

"-Oh, God," Pyrrha groaned, recalling parts of her argument from last night, "That was so academy...I can't believe that Nora and I got drunk in a bar and fought about boys. We're so much better than that. I just keep having flashes of things that...we said to each other. And she's so important to me. I acted like such a dick."

"Look...I don't know you that well, but you're clearly very important to Nora," Ren said, "And that must mean you're a pretty great person. I know she feels awful. I mean, technically, we all do-"

"-Yeah. What the hell is in Snake Juice...Demerol?"

"All I know is Nora's always talking about how lucky she is to have you as a friend. And...I just wanted you to know that."

Pyrrha slowly smiled upon hearing that. Although she didn't know Ren for that long, she liked that he took the time to do this for Nora. 

Also, she smiled because it was at that moment, she realized that Lie Ren wasn't slick at all. She knew that he really did come here to mend things between her and Nora, but she had a strong feeling as to why he was sticking his neck out for Nora's sake. "You're nice," she said, "I can see why she likes you."

And at that, Ren's face dropped. _Hang on, let's not get carried away here, Pyrrha!_

"Wait, when did she say...she likes me?"

Pyrrha playfully rolled her eyes at Ren's reaction. "Oh, God. This is so academy. Just rent a limo, ask her to the Beacon Dance. I'm sure she'll say yes."

Although Ren wanted to deny anything happening between him and Nora...for now, he decided to let it go. "All right. Thanks." 

* * *

Setting: City Manager's office 

Unbeknownst to Marrow and Neptune, Ghira decided to visit Jaune Arc himself and ask him why Marrow had to be punished for what he did. It still didn't make sense to him; Marrow may be annoying and self-centered, but he was just trying to get his business going. Ghira respected that attitude and it didn't sit right with him that the government shut Marrow down.

Jaune Arc, who was busy looking through some documents for a future project, braced himself for what Ghira had to say. Even he was upset with what he had to do. He didn't like giving out the bad news, that was why he had Ren with him as the assistant city manager. Jaune was all about positivity, it was Ren who had the courage to deliver the bad news. 

"So let me get this straight," Ghira said, his arms crossed as he stared down Jaune, "Marrow tries to get off the government teat...and we punish him. That doesn't make any sense to me."

Jaune sighed, putting his documents down so he could properly respond. "I'm sorry," he said, "Rules are rules. I wish there was something we could do. Hey Ren, is there something we can do?" 

Ghira and Jaune turned towards the assistant city manager's booth. Since Ren was out visiting Pyrrha, the booth was empty.

Jaune sighed again. "Damn it. Ren's not here." 

"Marrow's not scamming anyone," Ghira continued, "He's not savvy enough to manipulate the system like that. He's just a kid chasing a goofy dream."

"I'm sorry! My hands are tied." Jaune shrugged, upset that he couldn't be of more use. 

With that, Ghira stopped. He knew this was not going to work, that Jaune was going to tell him that there was no way Marrow could get his shares back...but still, it was disappointing to hear nonetheless.

* * *

Setting: Conference room, health department section of City Hall

Time: An hour after Ren's visit to Pyrrha...

Nora and Ren were interviewing their next candidate...who, oddly enough, was Bartholomew Oobleck. To say that the interview was awkward would be an understatement. Although Nora and Ren were treating Oobleck as if he were any other candidate, the two of them were nervous that he'd suddenly break out into a rant against his ex-wife. That was how they got here in the first place. 

There was also the awkward fact that they had to reject him as soon as the interview ended. This order came straight from Jaune, much to Nora and Ren's dismay. 

"Jan Oobleck was a terrible wife," Bart said, "I just want everybody to know that."

"Thank you, Bartholomew," Nora said, already knowing they had to reject him, "But we can't give you your job back-"

"-You sound just like her!" 

Nora frowned as Bart stood up, grabbed his things, and stormed out of the room. He somehow went from calm to angry in a split second, surprising both Nora and Ren. 

"Well...that was unpleasant," Ren glumly said as the doors closed behind Oobleck.

"Yeah. All right, who's next?"

Before Nora could read the name on the list, Pyrrha Nikos walked in. She looked far more presentable than how she looked in her house and was holding her resume in her hands. The only thing that was out of place was that her sweater was clearly backwards and inside out, but only Ren noticed. Nora was just happy to see that Pyrrha decided to come in for the job. 

"You came!" Nora said with glee. 

Pyrrha took a seat, smiling at Nora. "Yeah, I had some encouragement." Nora could've sworn that she saw Pyrrha give Ren a knowing look. Ren turned away as Nora looked at him, immediately connecting the dots. She was both surprised and impressed that he had gone out of his way to talk to Pyrrha, just to fix their situation.

Not wanting to draw anymore attention to himself, Ren pointed to Pyrrha's sweater and said, "Uh...your sweater's on inside out."

"...and backwards," Pyrrha noted when she looked down and saw her sweater tag, "It's been a tough morning...lots of regret and shame. That should be the official slogan for Snake Juice."

"Well, uh," Nora said, nervously, "this committee would like to ask if you are the kind of candidate who could forgive someone...after they've behaved like a complete jackass?"

"This candidate could...especially because this candidate also...behaved like a total jackass."

"Oh, please, don't worry about it. The committee totally understands."

Nora smiled at Pyrrha and Pyrrha smiled back. Ren, who was just watching the two women talk, smiled at both of them. Despite a rocky night, things were finally getting back to normal. The Nora-Pyrrha crisis was averted and all was right in the world...of the parks and rec department. 

"Also, I can talk about my qualifications for this position," Pyrrha continued, "But first, I am gonna go throw up in a wastebasket."

"Would you mind if I joined you?" Nora asked. 

"Not at all. Shall we?"

Pyrrha stood up and exited the conference room to throw her guts up. As Nora stood up to join her, she playfully smacked Ren on the arm with a folder she was carrying. She smiled at him, happy about what he did for them. 

_Thanks_ _Ren_ , Nora thought to herself, _That was cute of you-SWEET of you. WHOA, not cute! Where'd that thought come from, Nora?_

 _Hmm...she likes me,_ Ren thought to himself, _No...not like that...right?_

* * *

NORA'S POV

"Pyrrha came in the next day and had a second interview with Jaune. She nailed it, of course. But she doesn't want to totally leave her job. So they struck up a deal." _(Pyrrha finishes up her job interview with Jaune. The two shake hands and Jaune smiles at the camera, indicating that he's happy with Pyrrha taking over the position)_

"She works at City Hall part-time, and two days a week, she still gets to be the greatest nurse in the world." _(Pyrrha and Nora hug outside Jaune's office. They then head out of City Hall for lunch)_

"Win-win!"

"We need to remember what's important in life...friends, pancakes, and work." _(_ _Marrow Amin opens up a gift box he found on his desk. Inside is a bottle of Snake Juice. He then turns to Ghira's office. Ghira sees him and nods his head. Marrow smiles, realizing that it was Ghira who had sent the gift)_

"Or pancakes, friends, work...it doesn't matter. But work is third!"

* * *

**EPILOGUE: CRAZY EMERALD...AND THE DOUCHE!**

**Mercury Black:** So listen, Crazy Emerald, check this out, okay? I'm at this club last night just killing it...the Snake Hole Lounge. ( _plays sound effect of a rattlesnake rattling its tail)_

 **Emerald Sustrai:** Oh, yeah, is that a gay club? _(_ _plays sound effect of some obnoxious guy saying "Hello?")_

 **Mercury Black:** Shut up, ass! Come on, just hear me out! So I'm dancing on the floor with this...super...hot...chick. _(_ _plays sound effect of a Mistralian woman saying "Me so horny!")_

 **Emerald Sustrai:** More like a dude, I bet. _(_ _plays sound effect of some obnoxious guy saying "Hello?")_ Did you wet your whistle? _(plays sound effect of a whistle)_

 **Mercury Black:** Ha, I wish! _(plays sound effect of Sun Wukong going, "Me likey!")_ No, no, no, no. She spent the whole night talking to her friend, arguing about their feelings. 

(Nora, who is listening to the radio broadcast, along with Pyrrha and the rest of the parks and rec department: "Hey, that's me!")

 **Mercury Black:** Who knows? She's probably a lesbian. They were in the bathroom a loooooong time. _(starts playing a clip of Melissa Etheridge's "Come to My Window")_

(Marrow Amin, who had been holding in his laughter the whole time, starts laughing uncontrollably as the song plays) 

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Based on: "The Fight" (Parks and Recreation, season 3, episode 13)
> 
> AN: This chapter takes the cake for HARDEST TO CAST. I swear, I must've gone through a dozen combinations for the main cast. Jaune kept switching back-and-forth between Chris and Andy, Raven Branwen, Emerald Sustrai, and Cinder Fall were all going to be April at some point, Mercury was going to be Tom, Yang was going to be Ann...it was an absolute mess. I did manage to get to a cast I was genuinely happy with but good god, it was a nightmare in the beginning.
> 
> That said, the only character who I never wavered on was Leslie. Nora Valkyrie was my number one pick for Leslie, there was no one else I had in mind for that role.  
> \--------------------------------------------------------------------------  
> AN2: Author's goof. I almost made the mistake of casting Yang Xiao Long as Ann Perkins. I stopped myself when I realized this would imply that Yang dated Qrow Branwen. Pyrrha dating Qrow is still awkward but at least they aren't related. Besides, Pyrrha ended up fitting the role better and it was nice to have the whole JNPR team in the main cast.  
> \--------------------------------------------------------------------------  
> AN3: If you want to know why I chose this cast:  
> 1) Nora was always going to be Leslie. Same with Ren as Ben. 
> 
> 2) I wanted elderly characters for Jerry and Donna in order to highlight their status as the senior employees, which led to Klein and Maria's casting.
> 
> 3) Qrow is a bit of an idiot like Andy whereas Winter and April are both "ice queens". Also, Qrow and Winter have a similar age gap when compared to April and Andy. 
> 
> 4) Once I got all the main male roles casted, Jaune ended up being Chris Traeger by default. So, Pyrrha became Ann Perkins due to similarities in personality, the Arkos shipping, and it would be believable that she's Nora's best friend due to JNPR. 
> 
> 5) James Ironwood and Mercury Black were originally going to be Ron and Tom, respectively. However, since I've been using those two characters a lot recently, I decided to go with Ghira and Marrow. I don't want to be stuck using the same RWBY characters every chapter, that would get boring pretty fast (at least for me since I'm the one writing everything out).  
> \--------------------------------------------------------------------------  
> AN4: "Jaune Cutty-Sarc" is a reference to Cutty-Sark whiskey. It's a replacement for the Jägermeister/Traegermeister joke.


	35. Suggestions needed for Valentine's Day 2021 Special (NON-STORY)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just another poll for an upcoming major chapter for next month...

Hello everyone, hope y'all are having a pleasant day. Now, I'm still hard at work finishing up "Grimms". I can say right now that there's only two more chapters left for "Grimms" since we're nearing the end of the movie. So that's mainly what I've been doing for the past few days.

Now, in case it wasn't obvious, I'm not a "shippy" writer. All the ships present in this fic are only because the movie/TV show/short that the chapter was based on called for it. Also, I'm obviously not tied to any particular ship. Character relationships flip around from chapter to chapter, per the nature of a multiverse fanfic.

All that being said, for Valentine's Day 2021, I wanted to celebrate the ships of the RWBY-verse. So for V-Day, I'm moving away from my comfort zone and writing a "VALENTINE'S DAY SPECIAL 2021" fic, which will be a montage of segments dedicated to RWBY ships. 

So, for this chapter, I need the following:

  1. Comment below a ship you want to see AND- 
  2. -A romantic scene/clip from some movie/TV show/short that you want to see with that couple. 
  3. Add any additional details if necessary. Stuff like other characters appearing in the segment, if you want me to update the setting to Remnant or keep it the same as the source material, and so on.



CONFIRMED SEGMENTS FOR THE V-DAY SPECIAL (Note: If you see your favorite couple already listed below but had a different scene for them in mind, feel free to comment with your suggestion anyways. I'm open to doing multiple segments for one couple):

  1. ******Whiterose (Ruby x Weiss)******
    1. Scene: The famous upside-down kiss between Peter and MJ
    2. Movie: Spider-Man (2002) 
  2. **Emercury (Emerald x Mercury)**  

    1. Scene: Peter Quill introduces Gamora to "Fooled Around and Fell in Love" by Elvin Bishop aka the "pelvic sorcery" scene
    2. Movie: Guardians of the Galaxy (2014) 
  3. **Hummingbird (Qrow x Summer)**
    1. Scene: Kyle Reese and his picture of Sarah Connor / Kyle confesses his love to Sarah and they spend the night together
    2. Movie: The Terminator (1984) 
  4. **Qrowin / Snowbird (Qrow x Winter)**
    1. Scene: Tony Stark (alongside James Rhodes) stops Ivan Vanko and finally gets together with Pepper Potts
    2. Movie: Iron Man 2 (2010) 
  5. **BlackSun (Blake x Sun)**
    1. Scene: Mikaela Banes fixes Sam Witwicky's car and looks absolutely amazing while doing it / Bumblebee plays wingman to Sam 
    2. Movie: Transformers (2007) 
  6. **Arkos (Jaune x Pyrrha)**
    1. Scene: Wonder Woman and Steve Trevor spend the night together
    2. Movie: Wonder Woman (2017) 
  7. **Rosegarden (Ruby x Oscar)**
    1. Scene: Mike and Eleven's first kiss
    2. TV show: Stranger Things, season 1 
  8. **Bumbleby (Blake x Yang)**
    1. Scene: Jake and Sam kiss after Sam blows out her birthday cake candles
    2. Movie: Sixteen Candles (1984)




	36. RWBY-Fiction, Double Feature

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A preview to the next two movie-to-RWBY adaptations...

****

**Michael Rennie was ill**  
**The Day the Earth Stood Still**  
**But he told us where we stand**  
**And Flash Gordon was there**  
**In silver underwear**  
**Claude Rains was The Invisible Man**  
**Then something went wrong**  
**For Fay Wray and King Kong**  
**They got caught in a celluloid jam**  
**Then at a deadly pace**  
**It Came From Outer Space**  
**And this is how the message ran...**

**Science fiction (ooh ooh ooh) double feature**  
**Doctor X (ooh ooh ooh) will build a creature**  
**See androids fighting (ooh ooh ooh) Brad and Janet**  
**Anne Francis stars in (ooh ooh ooh) Forbidden Planet**  
**Wo oh oh oh oh oh**  
**At the late night, double feature, picture show**

**I knew Leo G. Carroll**  
**Was over a barrel**  
**When Tarantula took to the hills**  
**And I really got hot**  
**When I saw Janette Scott**  
**Fight a Triffid that spits poison and kills**  
**Dana Andrews said prunes**  
**Gave him the runes**  
**And passing them used lots of skills**  
**But When Worlds Collide**  
**Said George Pal to his bride**  
**I'm gonna give you some terrible thrills...like a-**

**-Science fiction (ooh ooh ooh) double feature**  
**Doctor X (ooh ooh ooh) will build a creature**  
**See androids fighting (ooh ooh ooh) Brad and Janet**  
**Anne Francis stars in (ooh ooh ooh) Forbidden Planet**  
**Wo oh oh oh oh oh**  
**At the late night, double feature, picture show**  
**I wanna go - Oh oh oh oh**  
**To the late night, double feature, picture show**  
**By R.K.O. - Wo oh oh oh**  
**To the late night, double feature, picture show**  
**In the back row - Oh oh oh oh**  
**To the late night, double feature, picture show**

* * *

AUTHOR'S NOTE

So, if you've been following this fic, I wrote a while back that I wanted to do full movies instead of the usual out-of-context scene. While that was fun in the beginning, I wanted to live up to the title of this fic, "RWBY: The AU **Theater** ". So, I switched to full movies, starting with my personal favorite science-fiction movie, "Aliens". Now that we're done with "Aliens" (or, "Grimms"), it's time to move on to our next movie. 

Now, here's the thing. "Grimmors" was definitely going to be the next movie. However, I also got a vote for "Branded-Face" and...honestly...I ended up getting a strong urge to work on that movie. While "Aliens" is my favorite sci-fi movie, "Scarface" is probably my favorite crime drama. I didn't want to just abandon "Tremors" but at the same time, I feel that I'd get bored with it, especially since I really wanted to work on "Scarface".

So, here's my compromise; I'm doing a double feature! (hence, the Rocky Horror intro). This is what I'll do, I'll work on both movies and will alternate between them. Basically, when I release a chapter for "Grimmors", expect that the next chapter will be "Branded-Face". And from there, it'll keep switching back and forth until I finish both movies. 

That all being said, I want to stress the following:

  1. I might do a random episode/short once in a while (it helps me deal with writer's block). Besides the movies, there's plenty of TV shows and comedy shorts I'd like to include for this fic. In addition, just like with Christmas, I will do special event chapters for certain holidays. For example, I have a Valentine's Day special coming up next month. So the schedule for upcoming chapters may look like this: 
    1. Grimmors chapter
    2. Branded-Face chapter
    3. Grimmors chapter
    4. Branded-Face chapter
    5. (random TV show/comedy short/special event) chapter 
    6. Grimmors chapter
    7. Branded-Face chapter
  2. THE POLL ON CHAPTER 1 IS STILL OPEN! Please, feel free to continue voting on the available movies. Remember, once I finish with both "Grimmors" and "Branded-Face", I'm gonna need to know which movie y'all want to see next. 



And now...onto the previews! 

* * *

[Artist: atlesianic (link to Tumblr account provided. Go support them! They were a blast to work with)](https://atlesianic.tumblr.com/)

[Link to the original post](https://giveamadeuschohisownmovie.tumblr.com/post/639536598101491712/welcome-to-rwby-the-au-theater-this-is-a)

GRIMMORS

Plot: Country bumpkin repairmen Sun Wukong and Neptune Vasilias are living in Kenyte, Vacuo, a boring small-town in the middle of nowhere. Nothing happens in this town, aside from the usual gossip concerning the conspiracy theorist, doomsday prepper couple Ruby Rose and Weiss Schnee. However, that all changes when seismologist Blake Belladonna picks up on strange, unnatural readings underneath the surface. When people start dying off, the people of Kenyte soon realize they're under attack...

Cast

  1. Sun Wukong, a repairman who is growing tired of living in the middle of nowhere _(counterpart: Valentine McKee)_
  2. Neptune Vasilias, a repairman and Sun's best friend who is just as tired of their boring lifestyle _(counterpart: Earl Bassett)_
  3. Blake Belladonna, a graduate student conducting seismology tests in the area _(counterpart: Rhonda LeBeck)_
  4. Ruby Rose, a survivalist doomsday prepper living in Kenyte with her wife, Weiss _(counterpart: Burt Gummer)_
  5. Li Ren, the owner of the general store _(counterpart: Walter Chang)_
  6. Whitley Schnee, Weiss' brother who frequently annoys the townsfolk _(counterpart: Melvin Plugg - loosely based)_
  7. Adrian Cotta-Arc, Terra Cotta's son _(counterpart: Mindy Sterngood)_
  8. Weiss Schnee, Ruby Rose's wife and fellow survivalist doomsday prepper _(counterpart: Heather Gummer)_
  9. Terra Cotta-Arc, Adrian's mother _(counterpart: Nancy Sterngood)_
  10. Yang Xiao Long, Ruby's half-sister and a cattle rancher living in Kenyte _(counterpart: Miguel Sanchez - loosely based)_
  11. Scarlet David, a Kenyte resident who is initially skeptical of the Grimm's existence _(counterpart: Nestor Cunningham)_
  12. Coco Adel and Velvet Scarlatina, a couple that recently moved to Kenyte _(counterpart: Megan and Jim)_
  13. Leonardo Lionheart, an old man living outside Kenyte _(counterpart: Edgar Deems)_
  14. Peter Port, a sheep farmer living near Kenyte _(counterpart: Old Fred)_
  15. Trifa and Yuma, two construction workers sent to fix the road leading to Kenyte _(counterpart: Howard and Carmine)_



NOTE: Before anyone says there's a typo, this is Li Ren, as in Lie Ren's father. This was intentional since Walter is an older character. Now, if I were to keep going with this universe (which is unlikely), Lie Ren would most likely be Jodi Chang from the third movie. Also, while I'm at it, Nora Valkyrie would be Jack Sawyer aka "Desert Jack". 

* * *

_Drawn by: Mimi the Alpaca (a really good friend of mine, please support her!)_

_If you wish to contact the artist:_

_Twitter:[twitter.com/mimithealpaca](https://twitter.com/mimithealpaca) [(twitter.com/meemsthealpaca for art-only)](https://twitter.com/meemsthealpaca)_

_Instagram:[instagram.com/mimithealpaca](https://www.instagram.com/mimithealpaca/)_

_Portfolio:[mimithealpaca.com](https://www.mimithealpaca.com/)_

_Other links:[mimithealpaca.carrd.co](https://mimithealpaca.carrd.co/)_

BRANDED-FACE

Plot: After getting a green card in exchange for assassinating a Valean government official, Adam Taurus stakes a claim on the illegal Dust trade. Viciously murdering anyone who stands in his way, Adam eventually becomes the biggest illegal Dust-lord in the kingdom, controlling nearly all the illegal Dust that comes through Vale. But increased pressure from the police, wars with Vacuan Dust cartels and his own paranoia serve to fuel the flames of his eventual downfall.

Cast

  1. Adam Taurus, a refugee/SDC fugitive from Atlas seeking a new life in Vale who eventually goes down the violent path of becoming Vale's most notorious illegal Dust-lord _(counterpart: Tony Montana)_
  2. Ilia Amitola, Adam's friend and right-hand woman _(counterpart: Manolo "Manny Ray" Ribera)_
  3. Cinder Fall, Sienna Khan's adopted daughter _(counterpart: Elvira Hancock - loosely based)_
  4. Blake Belladonna, Adam's adoptive sister, of whom he is overprotective _(counterpart: Gina Montana - loosely based)_
  5. Sienna Khan, Valean Dust-lord who mentors both Adam and Ilia _(counterpart: Frank Lopez)_
  6. Kali Belladonna, Adam's disapproving adoptive mother _(counterpart: Mama Montana - loosely based)_
  7. Marrow Amin, Sienna's second-in-command _(counterpart: Omar Suarez)_
  8. Raven Branwen, a powerful Vacuan Dust-lord who becomes Adam's lead supplier _(counterpart: Alejandro Sosa)_
  9. Roman Torchwick, a crooked cop on Sienna's payroll who attempts to extort Adam _(counterpart: Mel Bernstein)_
  10. Fennec Albain, a friend of Adam and Ilia _(counterpart: Chi Chi)_
  11. Corsac Albain, Fennec's brother and a bodyguard of Sienna's who later works for Adam _(counterpart: Ernie)_
  12. Tukson, another friend of Adam and Ilia _(counterpart: Angel)_
  13. Trifa, an underling of Adam _(counterpart: Nick the Pig)_
  14. Tyrian Callows, an illegal Dust trafficker who Adam crosses paths with _(counterpart: Hector the Toad)_
  15. Glynda Goodwitch, a banker used by Adam to launder his money _(counterpart: The Banker)_
  16. Vernal, one of Raven's top henchmen _(counterpart: Alberto the Shadow)_
  17. Velvet Scarlatina, Adam's lawyer _(counterpart: Sheffield)_
  18. Jaune Arc, an undercover cop _(counterpart: Seidelbaum)_
  19. Yang Xiao Long, Raven's daughter and her top assassin _(counterpart: The Skull)_
  20. Lisa Lavender, a reporter focused on exposing the illegal Dust trade _(counterpart: The Bolivian reporter)_



* * *

**NEW POLL!**

As I write out the chapters for both "Grimmors" and "Branded-Face", feel free to vote on the options listed below for the next movie you want to see adapted to the RWBY-verse. All the options from the previous poll are still here but I've also added a couple more movies. Just like the initial poll, all you have to do is comment below with which of the following choices you'd like to see next.

Go ahead and vote for your favorite! 

Also, I've updated the first chapter as well in order to reflect this current list. You can either vote on this chapter or on the first chapter, it doesn't matter. Vote anywhere you want on this fic, I promise you that I'll see it. 

  1. **"Inglourious White Fang"**
    1. Plot: It's Great War II. Under the command of the Führer Jacques Schnee, Atlas is close to conquering all of Remnant. In the midst of this world conquest, the Atlesian forces are also attempting to wipe out the entire faunus race, who they deem as "inferior" and "subhuman". In this violent tale of revenge, we follow two groups of faunus who will do whatever it takes to avenge their people. On one side is Blake Belladonna, who lost her entire family to the cruel Atlesian Colonel James Ironwood. On the other side is the "White Fang", a group of faunus soldiers led by Lieutenant Yang Xiao Long and Staff Sergeant Adam "The Cruel Bull" Taurus. Their mission; kill Atlesians. 
    2. Based on: Inglourious Basterds (2009) 
  2. **"Game Over"**
    1. Plot: Jaune Arc and Mercury Black wake up in a dilapidated restroom, chained to opposite sides of the room. In the middle of the room is a dead body; there's a tape recorder in one hand of the dead body and a revolver in the other. They soon learn that they're part of a bigger plan. Mercury must fight to survive. Jaune, however, must kill Mercury within 24 hours. If he doesn't...Pyrrha and their daughter will die...
    2. Based on: Saw (2004) 
  3. **"Raiders of the Lost Relic"**
    1. Plot: World-famous archaeologist/college professor/adventurer Taiyang Xiao Long goes on a worldwide hunt for a mysterious artifact known as "The Relic of the Brothers". Unlike his previous adventures, this one could have dire consequences if the artifact were to fall into the wrong hands. This is because standing in his way are the armies of Atlas, who wish to use the powers of the artifact against their enemies and achieve world domination. Luckily (or unluckily) for him, he has a partner who has the key to finding the Relic; his feisty ex-girlfriend Raven Branwen, who may or may not still hate him.
    2. Based on: Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) 
  4. **"Jaune Arc, the Huntsman Who Shagged Me"**
    1. Plot: Valean super-huntsman Jaune Arc must return to 1969, as arch-nemesis Dr. Arthur "Evil" Watts has ventured back to that year and successfully stolen Jaune's aura (also known as his "mojo") and set up a powerful laser and aimed it at Remnant. With the help of gorgeous huntress Yang Xiao Long, the newly single Jaune must now not only contend with Dr. Watts, but also Watt's vicious, pint-size attack-clone, Mini-Me.
    2. Based on: Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me (1999)
  5. **"Above 50 Miles"**
    1. Plot: Valean police officer Qrow Branwen angers retired bomb squad member Hazel Rainart by foiling his attempt at taking hostages. In revenge, Hazel arms a bus with a bomb that will explode if it drops below 50 miles per hour. With the help of spunky passenger Winter Schnee, Qrow and his partner Clover Ebi try to save the people on the bus before the bomb goes off, while also trying to figure out how Hazel is monitoring them.
    2. Based on: Speed (1994) 
  6. **"The Stone"**
    1. Plot: Atlesian chemical warfare expert Oscar Pine is sent on an urgent mission with a former Mistralian spy, Maria Calavera, to stop General James Ironwood from launching chemical weapons on Solitas Island into Mantle. General Ironwood demands $100 million in war reparations to be paid to the families of slain servicemen who died on covert operations. After their Ace Ops team is wiped out, Oscar and Maria deal with the soldiers on their own.
    2. Based on: The Rock (1996) 
  7. **"The Slime"**
    1. Plot: In a tiny Valean town, academy students Lie Ren, Nora Valkyrie and Jaune Arc discover a strange, gelatinous substance that melts the flesh of any living creatures in its path. The deadly substance gets into the town's sewer system, where it begins growing uncontrollably, occasionally emerging to feast on unsuspecting townspeople. A military clean-up crew is sent to eliminate the menace, but it may end up doing more harm than good.
    2. Based on: The Blob (1988) 
  8. **"Tundra Thunder"**
    1. Plot: While shooting a war film, film director Ozpin attempts to liven up proceedings by dropping the principle actors into the middle of a real jungle, claiming he is going to capture their performance with hidden cameras. The hapless group, including washed-up action star Taiyang Xiao Long, rookie actress Summer Rose, rapper Marrow Amin, drug-addled comedy star Qrow Branwen, and intense method actress Raven Branwen, are completely unaware when a series of unfortunate events leads them into the middle of a real war zone.
    2. Based on: Tropic Thunder (2008) 
  9. **"A Tale of Two Rats"**
    1. Plot: Valean cop Jaune Arc goes undercover to infiltrate the organization of gangland chief Roman Torchwick. As Jaune gains the mobster's trust, a career criminal named Mercury Black infiltrates the police department and reports on its activities to his syndicate bosses. When both organizations learn they have a mole in their midst, Jaune and Mercury must figure out each other's identities to save their own lives.
    2. Based on: The Departed (2006)
  10. **"Payback"**
    1. Plot: After defeating international terrorist Raven Branwen, Ghira Belladonna, Sun Wukong, and the rest of the crew have separated to return to more normal lives. However, Qrow Branwen, Raven's twin brother, is thirsty for revenge. A slick government agent offers to help Ghira and company take care of Branwen in exchange for their help in rescuing Emerald Sustrai, a kidnapped computer hacker who has developed a powerful surveillance program.
    2. Based on: Furious 7 (2015) 
  11. **"The Woman Who Cried Accident"**
    1. Plot: Top Valean cop Winter Schnee is good. Too good. And to stop the rest of her team looking bad, she is reassigned to the quiet island town of Patch. She is paired with Nora Valkyrie, who endlessly questions her on the action lifestyle. Everything seems quiet for Winter, until two actors are found decapitated. It is called an accident, but Winter isn't going to accept that, especially when more and more people turn up dead. Winter and Nora clash with everyone, whilst trying to uncover the truth behind the mystery of the apparent "accidents".
    2. Based on: Hot Fuzz (2007)
    3. NOTE: Continuation of "Still a Bit Stiff"
  12. **"Jaune of the Dead"**
    1. Plot: Jaune Arc is a 30-something loser with a dull, easy existence. When he's not working at the electronics store, he lives with his slovenly best friend, Neptune Vasilias, in a small flat on the outskirts of London. The only unpredictable element in his life is his girlfriend, Weiss Schnee, who wishes desperately for Jaune to grow up and be a man. When the town is inexplicably overrun with zombies, Jaune must rise to the occasion and protect both Weiss and his sister, Saphron Arc. 
    2. Based on: Shaun of the Dead (2004)
  13. **"Halfway Crook"**
    1. Plot: The setting is Kuo Kuona. The city is divided by 8 Mile, a road that splits the town in half along human-faunus lines. A young human rapper, Lie "B-Rabbit" Ren summons strength within himself to cross over these arbitrary boundaries to fulfill his dream of success in hip hop. With his pal Blake "Future" Belladonna and the three one third in place, all he has to do is not choke.
    2. Based on: 8 Mile (2002) 
  14. **"The Ren Identity"**
    1. Plot: The story of a man apparently named "Lie Ren" who was salvaged, near death, from the ocean by a Mistralian fishing boat. When he recuperates, Ren suffers from total amnesia, without identity or background...except for a range of extraordinary talents in fighting, linguistic skills and self-defense that speak of a dangerous past. He sets out on a desperate search-assisted by the initially rebellious Yang Xiao Long - to discover who he really is, and why he's being lethally pursued by assassins.
    2. Based on: The Bourne Identity (2002)
  15. **"Dude, I Think My Hand's Possessed"**
    1. Plot: When slacker teen Jaune Arc has his right hand possessed by a demonic force, he finds that his life gets a lot more interesting. While Jaune himself is an amiable guy, his hand proves to be an appendage of death, killing his two best buddies, Sun Wukong and Neptune Vasilias, who return to life as wisecracking zombies. In addition to murdering those closest to him, Jaune's evil hand significantly hinders his chances with lovely neighbor Neopolitan.
    2. Based on: Idle Hands (1999) 
  16. **"Weisses"**
    1. Plot: Emerald Sustrai is part of the most popular clique at Beacon Academy, but she disapproves of the other girls' cruel behavior. When Emerald and her new boyfriend, Mercury Black, confront clique leader Weiss Rose and accidentally poison her, they make it appear a suicide. Soon, Emerald realizes that Mercury is intentionally killing students he does not like. She races to stop Mercury while also clashing with the clique's new leader, Weiss Schnee.
    2. Based on: Heathers (1989) 
    3. Side note: To keep with the movie's naming scheme, our "Heathers" are Weiss Schnee (Heather Duke), Weiss Rose aka Ruby Rose (Heather Chandler), and Weiss Xiao Long aka Yang Xiao Long (Heather McNamara) 



**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "Grimmors" is based on: Tremors (1990)
> 
> "Branded-Face" is based on: Scarface (1983)


	37. Grimmors (Part 1)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's just another day in the boring desert settlement of Kenyte, Vacuo. Or is it?

**TRAILER #1**

****

_The Rooster Teeth logo is seen, but is made of dozens of Grimm creatures. The creatures then separate, running off-screen._

_Cut to black. In the dark, we hear a voice._

**Ghira Belladonna (voice-over)**

Tell us, Ms. Schnee...what do you fear?

_Cut to the Schnee mansion. We see a young Weiss Schnee falling through a couple of wooden boards. She lands in what appears to be an abandoned mine. As Weiss tries to pick herself up, she looks down the cave...and is suddenly ambushed by a swarm of Ravager Grimm (the Grimm that resembles bats)._

_Cut to the present day. An adult Weiss Schnee wakes up in bed, slightly groggy. From the way she looks, it's clear that she's been through a lot._

**Weiss Schnee (voice-over)**

How do you know my name?

_We cut to Weiss in a dingy prison cell. She looks haggard, as if she has been in prison for some time now. Ghira Belladonna, who is in a clean business suit, walks over to her. He's smiling at her, as if he's here to rescue her._

**Ghira Belladonna**

Well, the world is too small for someone like Weiss Schnee to disappear.

_As Weiss stares at Ghira, we cut to two quick clips, one of adult Weiss walking down a snowy mountain path, and another of young Weiss crying. In the young Weiss clip, we see that she's in a dirty alley behind a theater. She is mourning the deaths of Jacques Schnee, Willow Schnee, Winter Schnee, and Whitley Schnee. They have all been gunned down by an unknown assailant._

**Ghira Belladonna (voice-over)**

Your family's death was not your fault

_Cut to the White Fang headquarters, which is situated on top of the snowy mountain trail that Weiss was walking along earlier. Weiss enters the main hall, tired and shivering from the cold._

**Weiss Schnee (voice-over)**

My family deserves justice! I cannot let that pass! 

_Cut to Weiss training with Ghira on top of a frozen lake. They are sword-fighting, with Weiss wielding Myrtenaster. Despite showing considerable skill with her sword, Ghira easily overpowers her._

**Ghira Belladonna (voice-over)**

If you make yourself more than just a human...then you become something else entirely.

_We get more clips of Weiss training, this time of her standing on top of a series of bamboo poles. She's practicing maintaining her balance while two other White Fang operatives try knocking her down._

**Weiss Schnee**

Which is?

**Ghira Belladonna**

A legend, Ms. Schnee

_Cut to some time later. Weiss Schnee approaches a jet, where she's greeted by the Schnee family's loyal butler, Klein Sieben. Weiss nods her head at her butler._

**Klein Sieben**

Mistress Schnee...are you coming back for long, ma'am? 

_Cut to Atlas City. Weiss and Klein are onboard the jet. Klein watches Weiss as she tells him the story of what she's been doing since leaving Atlas._

**Weiss Schnee**

As long as it takes to show the people of Atlas their city doesn't belong to the criminals and the corrupt

_We cut to the city during the night. Weiss is at a hotel, attending some fancy party. As she's speaking with the upper-class of Atlas, we're introduced to Jaune Arc, who is Weiss' childhood best friend. Jaune looks surprised to see Weiss again after so many years apart. Weiss also looks surprised since she was not expecting to see him at this party._

**Jaune Arc**

Weiss?

**Weiss Schnee**

Jaune?

**Jaune Arc**

You've been gone a long time.

**Weiss Schnee**

I know.

_Cut to Jaune Arc taking the subway. As he sits there, we can see that he's contemplating how bad Atlas has gotten in terms of the crime rate and corruption._

**Jaune Arc**

Things are worse than ever down here. What chance does Atlas have when the good people do nothing?

_Weiss stares at Jaune with a determined look on her face, ready to finally make a difference in the city._

_Cut to Pietro Polendina's workshop. He opens a cabinet, revealing the suit that will be the basis for Weiss' superheroine costume. Pietro also shows off all the other gadgets in his workshop to Weiss, which will eventually become part of her main arsenal._

**Pietro Polendina**

Nomex survival suit for advanced infantry. Kevlar utility harness. Gas-powered magnetic grappler gun.

_Weiss turns her head and sees a bulky, heavy-duty vehicle that almost resembles a tank. It also has pieces that resemble parts of a paladin unit._

**Weiss Schnee**

What's that?

**Pietro Polendina**

What, the Tumbler? Oh, you wouldn't be interested in that.

_Cut to several quick clips of the Tumbler in action. This time, it has been painted entirely black. The Tumblr is seen driving through a waterfall, then smashing its way through a couple of pillars as it flees Atlas police._

_We then see Weiss standing in the same mineshaft she fell into when she was a kid. This time, when the Ravager Grimm comes for her, she stands perfectly still, allowing the Grimm bats to circle her. She's at peace with the Grimm, as if she conquered her fear of them._

**Jaune Arc (voice-over)**

I've spent a lot of time being scared for you. Then I heard you were back. But the woman I loved...the woman who vanished...never came back.

_As Jaune is telling this to Weiss, we see clips of Weiss opening a cabinet, revealing her superheroine costume. In total contrast to her usual wardrobe, it's all-black and is made to resemble the Grimm's design. Weiss Schnee then suits up, ready to go to war with Atlas' worst._

_Weiss tosses a bat-shaped shuriken, which lodges itself into the wall. We then cut to her standing on top of a roof in her complete costume. She stares down at the city, menacingly._

_Cut to a warehouse full of bad guys. Leading the pack is Doctor Arthur Watts, who is wearing what appears to be a scarecrow mask._

**Arthur Watts**

She's here...

**Watts' lead henchman**

Who? 

**Arthur Watts**

The Grimm-Woman

**THIS SUMMER**

_A swarm of Ravager Grimm floods the halls of Ozma Asylum. As the Atlesian cops try to escape the Grimm, Weiss jumps over the edge and descends all the way to the bottom. She does a superhero landing, then casually walks away._

_Next, we see Weiss driving through the city in the Tumbler (now known as the Grimm-Mobile). A couple of Atlesian cop cars flip over as they try and fail to stop Weiss._

_Jaune Arc is seen shielding a child, apparently terrified of someone (or something) stalking them. We then see that it's Arthur Watts who is stalking them, his scarecrow mask having somehow come alive._

**Sienna Khan (voice-over)**

Atlas must be destroyed! 

_As Sienna declares to the world that Atlas must be destroyed, we see a couple clips of the city being torn apart by rioters and White Fang operatives. We then see Weiss soaring above the city through a cloud of smoke._

**Weiss Schnee**

Atlas isn't beyond saving!

_We cut back to the city in chaos. Weiss, who is in full Grimm-Woman gear, is battling several White Fang operatives, apparently having turned on their former ally._

**EVIL**

_Schnee Mansion is burning down to the ground._

_Weiss is still soaring around the city, observing the damage being done to it._

_Jaune Arc, who has passed out for some reason, is lifted up by Weiss. "Just hold on!" Weiss shouts as she tries to get Jaune out of the building._

_Weiss and Klein Sieben flee as Schnee Mansion burns and crumbles all around them._

**FEARS THE QUEEN**

_Weiss fires out a line from her grappling gun. She is then seen being hoisted away as her grappling hook is pulled on the other end._

_The Grimm-Mobile is then seen crashing into more stuff._

_The subway train that Jaune was using suddenly falls apart. The train collapses, hitting the streets and destroying a couple more buildings._

_"JAUNE!" Weiss screams as she sees Jaune pass out._

_The Grimm-Mobile leaps from one building to the next._

_Weiss, who is on fire for some reason, leaps to safety to another building._

_Klein Sieben and Weiss reach an elevator. Just as the Schnee Mansion fire engulfs them, Klein presses a button, sending the elevator down into the mineshaft that Weiss was in._

_Arthur Watts is seen on a horse, still wearing his scarecrow mask. The horse resembles a Grimm as its eyes glow red and it blows fire from its mouth._

_Weiss jumps down a building. Before she hits the ground, she extends her arms, letting her glide up thanks to her built-in wings in her suit._

_Cut to black. We then see a swarm of Ravager Grimm form the symbol of a bat, which is Weiss's symbol._

_Cut to Weiss Schnee attending some fancy, upper-class party. She's pretending to act vain and pompous in order to draw away suspicion to her secret identity._

**Weiss Schnee**

A woman who dresses as a Grimm...she clearly has issues!

**WEISS SCHNEE STARS IN...**

**"GRIMM-WOMAN BEGINS"**

* * *

**TRAILER #2**

****

_1980s-style synth music plays in the background as the trailer starts up. We open up with Yang Xiao Long in her house, getting ready to dive into the pool that is set up in her backyard. She dives in and starts floating aimlessly on the surface. As she looks up to the sky, we see that she's deep in thought._

**Yang Xiao Long (voice-over)**

I used to daydream about being old enough to go on dates.

_Cut to Yang's bedroom. She's looking in a mirror as she's applying makeup to her face. Based on how she's staring into the mirror, she's clearly nervous about something._

**Yang Xiao Long (voice-over)**

I had this image of myself...holding hands with a really cute guy...driving along some pretty road.

_Cut to night. Yang is on a date with Team FNKI member, Flynt Coal. He takes her to a secluded spot, where they start making out._

**Yang Xiao Long (voice-over)**

It's never about going anywhere, really. It's having some sort of freedom, I guess. 

_We then cut to Flynt driving Yang to another area. He parks the car in an empty lot. Through a series of quick clips, we see that Yang and Flynt are having sex in the back of the car. Since the car door is open, Yang is hanging out from her seat as she's doing it with Flynt, allowing her to grip some weeds on the ground._

_All of a sudden...Yang's arms go limp. She whimpers as she's apparently rendered unconscious. This all happens off-screen, making it unclear what knocked Yang out._

_Due to the sudden shift in tone, the music becomes...sinister. Almost chaotic._

**A ROOSTER TEETH PRODUCTION**

_We cut to a tunnel underneath a road. Yang is seen strapped down to a wheelchair, still unconscious from earlier. She's also barely clothed._

**Flynt Coal**

Yang? You awake?

_Yang suddenly wakes up. She struggles with her restraints as we see Flynt walking behind her. He has a flashlight and is looking around the area for...something._

**Yang Xiao Long**

Flynt...what are you doing-

**Flynt Coal**

-you're not gonna believe me...but I need you to remember what I'm saying. This...thing...is gonna follow you.

_Cut to a clip of some person walking along the road. They are slowly approaching Yang and Flynt._

_Afterwards, we cut back to Yang's house. Flynt drops Yang off on the road, then drives off in a panic. As Flynt drives away, Yang's friends run out of the house to help her up._

**Flynt Coal (voice-over)**

Somebody gave it to me...and now I passed it to you. 

_Cut to Yang in the hospital. She is slowly regaining her senses, still traumatized from her night with Flynt and whatever it was that was following them._

_Yang stares at the room door. It's wide open. She starts to panic, remembering that the thing is still coming after her. She starts to cry out of sheer fear._

**Flynt Coal (voice-over)**

Wherever you are...it's somewhere walking...straight for you. All you can do is pass it along to someone else. 

**CRITICS' WEEK**

**CANNES**

**2014**

**Yang Xiao Long**

I'm scared...I need to find him.

_Cut to a park in the middle of the night. Yang, along with her half-sister Ruby Rose and close friends Coco Adel and Lie Ren, meet with Yang's neighbor, Mercury Black. Mercury looks skeptical, as if Yang just told him the story of what happened to her._

**Mercury Black**

Did he really do it to you?

_Cut to Yang, Ruby, Coco, Lie, and Mercury driving out of the city to find Flynt Coal._

**Raven Branwen (voice-over)**

Apparently he used a fake name to rent a house in the city.

_Cut to a dingy apartment. Yang and friends are searching around, disgusted by the state of the room._

**Mercury Black (voice-over)**

This isn't real, I swear to you. This is just some game. 

_Cut to another house. Yang and friends have caught up to Flynt Coal. Flynt looks distraught, wanting to be anywhere else but here._

**Flynt Coal**

If it kills her...it gets me. And it goes straight down the line whoever started it! 

**"Like an urban legend you've known your whole life" - HitFix**

**Lie Ren**

What exactly is supposed to be following you?

_Cut to Yang eating food by herself in some maintenance room. She looks tired, as if she's been running from the thing for so long now. She looks up to Ren, who is in the room with her but off-screen._

**Yang Xiao Long**

...I don't know.

_Cut to Yang, driving away from her house. As the car goes down the street, she sees that the thing is standing on top of her house's roof, just staring at her as she leaves._

**Mercury Black (voice-over)**

Something happened, but...it's not what she thinks, okay! 

**"The most clever tweak on horror conventions since 'Cabin in the Woods'!" - Badass Digest**

_Cut to Yang in her room. Her face is wet from crying and she looks completely exhausted. Ruby is sitting in front of her, unsure what to do to help Yang._

**Yang Xiao Long**

...you don't believe me. 

_Suddenly, we hear knocking at the door. Yang, Ruby, and Ren turn around, not expecting any company. Ren grabs a broom, ready to smack whatever it is on the other side. Ruby stands up and walks over to the door, cautious._

**Ruby Rose**

Auntie Raven...is that you?

**Coco Adel (from behind the door)**

No, it's me. 

_The door opens and Ruby and Ren sigh in relief when they see Coco Adel._

**Ruby Rose**

See, Yang? Everything's okay!

_Yang stands up...then starts to panic when an 8-foot tall man with no eyes suddenly walks up behind Coco._

_Cut to another quick clip. Yang screams as someone is suddenly pulled into another room._

_At this point, the music has gone from chaotic to absolute anxiety-inducing._

**"What filmmaker David Robert Mitchell does with this concept is 'nothing short of amazing'!" - Rolling Stone**

**Flynt Coal (voice-over)**

It can look like someone you know...or it can be a stranger in the crowd. Whatever helps it get close to you. 

_Lie Ren stares at Yang, who looks stressed out._

_Yang is then seen at Beacon Academy. She's walking down the hallway when, all of a sudden, she sees an old lady coming towards her._

_Cut to a park by Beacon Academy. As Yang looks around, she sees a random student coming straight towards her._

**IT DOESN'T THINK**

_Yang is walking down a dark hallway. Her arm is in a cast and she looks like a complete mess as she scans the room for the walking demon._

_Cut to Yang driving away. She's crying as she sees the demon from behind her._

**IT DOESN'T FEEL**

_Yang climbs up a chain-link fence leading back to Beacon Academy_

_Cut to a beach where Yang, Coco, and Ruby are running away from the walking demon. Ren is down the beach, trying to catch up to them._

_Cut to another scene, where Yang is apparently trying to force the walking demon off of her._

_Cut to another scene, where Yang is screaming as the walking demon appears from down the hallway._

**IT DOESN'T GIVE UP**

_Yang is in her car, frantically driving away from the walking demon. She turns and suddenly crashes into a cornfield on the side of the road._

_Cut to Yang by a swimming pool. The water slowly turns red as blood pollutes the clean water._

**WHEREVER SHE WILL GO... IT FOLLOWS**

**YANG XIAO LONG IS IN THE FIGHT OF HER LIFE AGAINST...**

**"THE STALKING, TENACIOUS DEMON"**

* * *

**TRAILER #3**

****

_We start off with Jaune Arc and Oscar Pine on top of some sort of platform high above the ground. Beneath them is a lake. Down by the lake are Jaune's friends, which include Emerald Sustrai and Mercury Black. Oscar looks nervous but Jaune pats him on the back, trying to calm him down._

**Jaune Arc**

One...two...three! 

_Suddenly, Oscar jumps off the platform to the water below. However, Jaune doesn't follow him. It turns out, this was all a cruel prank to get Oscar to jump into the lake._

**Narrator (voice-over)**

Jaune Arc...was heading nowhere fast.

_Jaune Arc is seen partying with his friends, mainly to celebrate pranking Oscar. We then cut to Jaune fleeing from the police in his car. He makes a wrong turn, leading to him crashing into a few water barrels._

_Cut to the headmaster's office. Jaune has some field dressing to his head, a result of his crash from earlier._

**Jaune Arc**

Oh what, you're gonna expel me?

**Ozpin**

It's time for you to start spending time with other kinds of people. Don't blow it, Jaune.

_Cut to Velvet Scarlatina. She looks up to the sky, a dreamy look on her face as she ponders her place in the universe. "Cry" by Mandy Moore starts playing as she's being introduced._

**Narrator (voice-over)**

Velvet Scarlatina...knew exactly who she was. 

_Cut to the front of Beacon Academy. Jaune and his friends are watching as Velvet walks to class, holding a box of supplies for an upcoming project._

**Emerald Sustrai**

There goes Velvet Scarlatina. I swear, she's worn that dress since primary school. (as Velvet walks by the group) Nice sweater, Scarlatina.

**Velvet Scarlatina**

(not picking up on Emerald's sarcasm) Thank you.

_Velvet then walks away. As soon as she's out of sight, Jaune, Emerald, and the rest of their friends laugh at the rabbit faunus._

_Cut to a bus on the way to the academy. Jaune and Velvet are sitting side-by-side, although Jaune clearly looks like he'd rather be anywhere else but here._

**Jaune Arc**

So what's your deal? You don't care what people think about you?

**Velvet Scarlatina**

(smiles at Jaune) No! 

**Narrator (voice-over)**

Now...two people who had nothing in common...have everything to learn from each other.

_Cut to the Academy. Jaune and Velvet are trying to get along, although Jaune looks bored with his schoolwork._

_We then cut to Jaune, who is talking to Velvet by her locker. He looks stressed as he begs her for a favor._

**Jaune Arc**

I need help with my work.

**Velvet Scarlatina**

Jaune Arc's asking me for help?

**Jaune Arc**

(sighs) Please. 

**Velvet Scarlatina**

Okay. 

_Cut to Jaune and Velvet walking by each other in a crowded hallway. They both exchange glances but continue to move away._

_Cut to Velvet Scarlatina's house. Velvet opens her door. She frowns when she sees that it's Jaune Arc._

**Ghira Belladonna (voice-over)**

Jaune Arc's coming here?

**Velvet Scarlatina (voice-over)**

Dad, I'm not a child.

**Ghira Belladonna (voice-over)**

Well, it's him I don't trust, not you.

_Cut to night and some time in the future. At this point, Jaune and Velvet's relationship has drastically improved as he takes her by the hand. She giggles as they walk along the road. Jaune smiles back at her, lovingly._

_Cut back to the Academy. Jaune walks up to Mercury and they do their signature handshake._

_The music changes. Now it's "Dare You to Move" by Switchfoot._

**Mercury Black**

Jaune! Where've you been!

**Jaune Arc**

Nowhere, man.

_Cut to Jaune Arc with another one of his friends, Sage Ayana. Sage looks annoyed with Jaune._

**Sage Ayana**

What's with you man? It's like you don't even have time for your real friends anymore.

_Cut to inside the school. Jaune, Sage, Mercury, and Emerald are all hanging out when they see Velvet Scarlatina walk towards them. Jaune looks away, suddenly uncomfortable with his situation._

**Velvet Scarlatina**

Hey Arc! So...I'll see you after school?

**Jaune Arc**

...in your dreams.

_Velvet frowns...but then sees that his friends are all staring at her, snickering. She sighs, disappointed but knowing full well why Jaune just blew her off._

_Cut back to Jaune and Sage, who are by the same lake that Oscar Pine jumped into. Jaune looks unhappy with himself while Sage just shakes his head, unsure what to make of his friend._

**Sage Ayana**

This girl's changed you and you don't even know it, man.

_Cut to Jaune in his room. He flips through his yearbook until he lands on Velvet's school picture. Velvet's profile reads:_ _"Ambition: To witness a miracle."_

_Cut back to Velvet's house. Jaune is knocking at the door, trying to reach her._

**Jaune Arc**

C'mon Velvet...open the door! Please-

_The door suddenly opens. Velvet is there, smiling passive-aggressively at Jaune._

**Jaune Arc**

Listen Velvet...I was hoping we could-

**Velvet Scarlatina**

-we could be secret friends?

**Jaune Arc**

Exactly! It's like you're reading my mind.

**Velvet Scarlatina**

Great...um, maybe you can read mine? (Velvet frowns at Jaune) 

_Jaune stares blankly at Velvet. Before he has a chance to answer her question, Velvet slams the door on his face._

**TAKE A RISK**

_Cut to Jaune and Velvet in the cafeteria. Velvet is still unhappy with Jaune while Jaune looks like he's pleading with Velvet to forgive him._

**Jaune Arc**

Velvet...I miss spending time with you.

**Velvet Scarlatina**

Prove it.

_As Velvet stands up to storm out of the cafeteria, she sees Sage laughing at her. He's holding some kind of flyer that she doesn't see at first. She then looks around the room and sees that all her other classmates have copies of the same flyer. She starts to panic when she notices that the flyer contains inappropriately photoshopped pictures of her._

_Before Velvet could flee, Jaune walks up to her to try to calm her down._

**Jaune Arc**

(whispering to Velvet) This is about me, okay. This is not you.

_Jaune then walks away from Velvet to confront Mercury. As Mercury is laughing about the cruel photoshop prank, Jaune suddenly knocks him down with a solid punch to the jaw._

_Jaune then walks away to escort Velvet out of the cafeteria. As they leave, Mercury is helped up by his friends. He's pissed off at Jaune._

**Mercury Black**

We're through Arc! You hear me! We're through!

**DARE YOU TO MOVE**

_Jaune is seen staring out the lake, deep in thought. We're not sure what he's thinking about but it's clear that something bad has happened._

_Cut back to the Academy. Jaune catches up to Velvet, who is still unhappy with him._

**Jaune Arc**

Maybe you're too scared that someone might actually want to be with you-

**Velvet Scarlatina**

-and why would that scare me?!

**Jaune Arc**

Because you want to be with me, too!

_Cut to night. We're in a brightly-lit park path where Jaune and Velvet are. There's no one else in the area._

**Velvet Scarlatina**

You know, I-I was getting along with everything fine, and then you happen!

_Jaune sadly watches as Velvet runs away from him. Velvet is tearing up, but it's not clear why she's crying._

**LOVE IS A LEAP OF FAITH**

_Cut to day. Jaune is at the Scarlatina household, confronting Velvet's adoptive father, Ghira Belladonna._

**Jaune Arc**

I'm not going anywhere. Please tell Velvet that. She makes me want to be...different. Better.

_Cut to Jaune and Velvet slow-dancing on the balcony of her room. They're both smiling at each other, happy that they have each other._

**STARRING**

**JAUNE ARC**

**VELVET SCARLATINA**

_Jaune applies a fake tattoo to Velvet's back. She smiles at him as Jaune examines his handiwork._

_Cut to a dock. It's the same location where Jaune was staring out the lake from earlier. He's with Velvet, who suddenly looks nervous to be around him._

**Jaune Arc**

I might kiss you...

**Velvet Scarlatina**

...I might be bad at it.

**Jaune Arc**

That's not possible.

_Velvet closes her eyes as Jaune leans in for a kiss. She pulls him in closer as their lips touch._

**BASED ON THE BEST-SELLING NOVEL**

**JAUNE ARC AND** **VELVET SCARLATINA ARE...**

**"THE JERK AND THE DREAMER"**

**FEATURING SONGS FROM MANDY MOORE:**

**ONLY HOPE**

**CRY**

* * *

* * *

** GRIMMORS **

Setting: A few miles outside of Kenyte, Vacuo (a small, isolated settlement in the middle of the desert) 

Time: Noon time

It was another warm, sunny day in the middle of nowhere. The sun beat down on the plains of Vacuo, making the air feel hot and dry. Due to how isolated the area was, all you could hear were the soft moos from the cows that were aimlessly wandering the area and the dust and tumbleweed being blown around by the wind. 

For Sun Wukong, this was somehow both paradise and hell. On one hand, it was paradise since he couldn't imagine himself living in a city, with all the hustle and bustle of the city-folk. He was a country boy, he planned to live and die in the rural parts of Vacuo. On the other hand, it was hell since there was just nothing to do around these parts. Sun could've sworn he saw the same cow pass by his truck eight times. Just the fact that he was keeping track of the cow and that he could tell it apart from the rest of its pack was proof of how dull his life was. 

As Sun contemplated his life, he walked away from his truck and approached the edge of a cliff that led down to a grassy meadow. He then opened the zipper on his pants and started peeing out the edge of the cliff, not caring if there was anything or anyone at the bottom.

 _Yup...this is where I am in life,_ Sun thought to himself, _just...peeing off the edge of a cliff...doing nothing worthwhile. And I'm probably going to do this again tomorrow. Maybe I should've gone to Shade Academy when I had the chance. Oh well..._

Sun finished up and quickly closed the zipper on his pants. He then walked back to his truck to wake up his partner and fellow handyman, Neptune Vasilias, who was sleeping in the back of the truck. Just like Sun, Neptune felt like he was going nowhere in life, although he was a lot more obvious and vocal about his boredom than Sun was. 

After quickly readjusting his pants since his jeans were rising up on his buttocks, Sun groaned when he saw Neptune still knocked out cold despite the sun beaming down on his face. He was snoring loudly, which annoyed Sun even further. "Good morning, Mr. Vasilias," Sun said, trying to get Neptune's attention, "This is your wake-up call. Please move your ass."

Nothing. Neptune let out another loud snore, making Sun roll his eyes. _This lazy son-of-a-gun...I swear, Neptune..._

As Sun stared out the field thinking of ways to wake his blue-haired friend up, he noticed a couple of cows from afar. They were the same ones who were making all the mooing noises he heard while pissing off the edge of the cliff. Thinking back to how dangerous a pack of cows could be when agitated, Sun smiled when he realized there was a surefire way to wake Neptune up. _Okay bud...you asked for this!_

Sun walked over to one of the truck's back wheels. He then hopped up on the wheel and started rocking the truck back-and-forth.

"STAMPEDE!" Sun shouted at Neptune as he continued to shake his truck around. "STAMPEDE, NEPTUNE! GET OUT OF THE WAY! GET OUT OF THE WAY!" 

Neptune's eyes shot open at the mention of a stampede and, before he could stop himself, he slipped off the back of the truck and landed on the ground. He was still in his sleeping bag, leading to the bag being covered in sand and dust. Sun laughed as Neptune groaned, both from the pain in his back from hitting the ground and from the annoyance of being rudely woken up. 

Neptune looked around frantically, wanting to see which direction Sun's 'stampede' was coming from. He growled when he saw that the only group of cows that were in the area were just roaming around aimlessly, eating grass every now and then. The stampede was just Sun being an idiot. "You dumb shit!" Neptune shouted at Sun. He stood up, patting away the sand and dust that had collected on his clothes. Sun laughed back at him, then got off the truck to start preparing for the rest of the day.

"You know, I was in a stampede once!" Neptune shouted at Sun, still upset, "Three hundred head going-"

"-hell-bent for the horizon." "Hell-bent for the horizon," Sun said at the same time with Neptune. Neptune shook his head as he put his boots on. Sun walked up to him as he put on his vest, still smiling at Neptune. He's heard Neptune's stampede story so many times, he could recite it just as well as Neptune could.

"Now, exactly how many cows are required for a stampede, Neptune?" Sun asked, smiling cheekily at his friend, "I mean, is it like three or more? Is there a minimum speed?"

"I wish a stampede up your ass," Neptune snapped at Sun as he cracked his fingers and tossed his sleeping bag back onto the truck. Still frustrated, Neptune reached into his jeans pocket and pulled out a pack of cigarettes. He needed a smoke to deal with Sun's pranks on him. When he realized that the pack was actually empty, Neptune tossed it aside, then went back into his pockets to try to find another one. Instead, he came across his lighter, which he placed in his mouth for now. 

Sun, feeling the urge to smoke as well, followed suit...only to realize that his pack was empty. He shrugged, then tossed the empty pack away and reached for another pack in his other pocket...only to realize that pack was empty as well. Sun then repeated this process for the third pack he pulled out...and the fourth...and the fifth, before finally coming across his sixth pack of cigarettes, which was conveniently down to two sticks. Just seeing how many cigarettes he had gone through made Sun feel slightly guilty. 

_Shit, maybe I should consider quitting smoking,_ Sun thought as he tossed his sixth pack of cigarettes away and placed one of the two remaining cigarettes in his mouth. Seeing his friend struggling to find a cigarette to smoke, Sun held out his final remaining cigarette to him. 

Unable to find another pack of cigarettes in his clothes, Neptune sighed and took the cigarette from Sun. As a peace offering, Neptune held up his lighter to Sun and lit his cigarette for him. He then lit his own cigarette and took a quick puff. 

As both men continued to smoke, Sun lazily started doing his chores. He put on his cowboy hat, then grabbed his belt for his pants. Meanwhile, Neptune pushed away Sun's staff to grab the canister they used for coffee. Expecting it to have freshly brewed coffee inside, Neptune frowned when he shook it around and didn't hear the sloshing sounds of liquid. _Sun, what the hell have you been doing all morning, jerking yourself off,_ Neptune thought to himself as he put the canister down. 

"No breakfast?" Neptune asked.

Sun stopped what he was doing and turned to Neptune. He smiled sheepishly at his friend; Sun had simply forgotten to make coffee this morning. At the same time, Sun was expecting Neptune to make the coffee this time. "I did it yesterday," he said, "You know, when I made bologna and beans."

Neptune frowned at Sun. "No," Neptune said, "It was eggs. I did eggs, over easy." 

"The hell you did! Bologna and beans, that was me! It's your turn, bro!" 

The two men glared at each other, neither one wanting to step down. Realizing that this whole argument was petty and stupid, Neptune let out a puff of smoke, then raised his fist to Sun. To most people, it would look like Neptune wanted to fight Sun. But to Sun, he knew exactly what it meant; rock, paper, scissors. This was how the both of them settled their disputes. 

Sun groaned and puffed out some smoke from his cigarette. Reluctantly, he raised his fist. Sun and Neptune then played one round of rock, paper, scissors, to see who would make breakfast.

Sun groaned again when he threw out paper and saw that Neptune threw out rock. This time, it was Sun who was frowning while Neptune smiled back, reveling in his friend's annoyance. "Well, well, well," Neptune gloated, "I guess when I'm your age, I'll forget what I eat, too." Neptune then grabbed the coffee canister and handed it to Sun. Sun snatched the canister from Neptune and walked around the truck to prepare the coffee. 

* * *

Two hours later...

"OW, GODDAMN IT!"

Neptune Vasilias groaned as the barbed wire he was setting up for a fence grazed against his arm, cutting him slightly. He tossed the barbed wire aside as Sun walked beside him in order to set up the wooden planks (which have all been sharpened into stakes) needed for the fence.

"I ask you," Neptune complained to Sun, "Is this a job for intelligent men?"

"Show me one, I'll ask him," Sun replied snarkily as he put his wooden stakes down to help Neptune finish setting up the barbed wire. 

"I mean, if we were real serious about money, we'd quit being hired hands-"

"-handymen, Neptune! We are handymen!"

Neptune rolled his eyes, not caring about the semantics. "Yeah, yeah," he said, "We should quit this job and find ourselves some real employment."

Sun stopped what he was doing and looked at Neptune. He thought back to what he was thinking about earlier this morning, that he couldn't imagine himself in some big city, trying to make a living as an urban man. Although life out in the middle of nowhere was boring, this was the life he knew best. "Are you gonna give up all this personal freedom?" Sun asked, pointing all over the valley to illustrate his point to Neptune, "I don't know, Neptune."

Neptune didn't answer. Instead, he watched as Sun turn back to the fence to finish the job. While holding the barbed wire in place over one of the wooden pickets, Sun hammered the wire in. Neptune cringed when he saw the plank slightly break from Sun's hammering. _Maybe don't hammer too hard next time, bud,_ Neptune thought as he examined the damaged wooden stake. 

* * *

A few minutes later...

With the barbed wire fence (mostly) complete, both Sun and Neptune drove off back towards the Kenyte settlement. Due to the road being unpaved, the truck bumped and shook as Sun drove. That didn't bother either men as they were used to driving off-road. In fact, both of them were enjoying the ride. It was the closest thing they had to a roller coaster out here in the middle of nowhere.

"Ha, freeway!" Sun joked. Turning to Neptune, Sun saw that his friend was reading through his notebook. Being the more organized one between the two of them, Neptune had a planner which detailed all their tasks. "So what's on the agenda for today?" 

"It's garbage day," Neptune said, not taking his eyes off of his planner.

Sun groaned. It was his least favorite of the tasks that the townsfolk of Kenyte assigned to them. "Oh, man!" he said, "Already?! Hey, what's Scarlet David paying us?"

"Fifty liens. And that's forty-seven liens more than we got."

 _Goddamn it, that's just pocket money,_ Sun thought to himself, _they're paying us prison-labor level wages!_ "Hey, Ruby and Weiss' place is closer. Let's do their linoleum today and do the garbage tomorrow!" Although Sun was wary of Ruby Rose and Weiss Schnee, Kenyte's resident doomsday preppers/weapon nuts, he was willing to visit their compound in order to avoid Scarlet's garbage duty. If you asked him, Sun would say it was better dealing with the crazy than with literal trash. 

Neptune shook his head. "Scarlet's not home tomorrow," he reasoned, "Now, look, we don't dig today, we don't get paid today. Now, damn it, Wukong, you never plan ahead! You never take the long view! I mean, here it is, Monday, and I'm already thinking of Wednesday."

Sun frowned. Although he wanted to argue back, part of him knew that what Neptune was saying was the truth. He lived by an "enjoy today, worry about tomorrow later" approach to life and although it worked out fine for him, most people who knew him hated that he never seemed to have a plan. Neptune was the complete opposite, always thinking ahead and aiming for higher. Although they were friends, Sun did wonder from time-to-time why Neptune chose to stick with him. He didn't want to admit it but sometimes he felt that he was bringing their partnership down. 

As Sun was about to say something about doing Scarlet's garbage, Neptune asked, "It is Monday, right?" He then flipped through his notebook, wondering if he was on the right date. 

At that, Sun smiled a little. _Guess you're not THAT smart, Vasilias...even though you are still clearly the smart one between us._

As Neptune reviewed his notes to figure out what day of the week it was, Sun noticed a truck in the distance. It was parked off the path. Since Sun knew everyone who lived in Kenyte, he instantly knew that it was someone not from the area based on the fact that he didn't recognize the truck.

"Hey, who the hell's that?" Sun asked, "That's not what's-his-name, the grad student?" Sun Wukong cringed when he thought back to the environmental science major, Dove Bronzewing, who started living in the area for an internship he signed up for. Dove may have been a great student but Sun just couldn't stand the guy's attitude, especially the way he talked about faunus. Several times, Sun was close to knocking Dove out for some insensitive comment about faunus, ranging from faunus apparently having "too much freedom" to the myth that faunus women preferred human men. And each time, Neptune had to be the one to talk him out of striking Dove. 

"No, he graduated," Neptune said, much to Sun's relief, "Must be the new one." 

"The new one?" As Sun stared at the truck, he thought back to the town meeting that Kenyte had about another college student coming to live in the area for an internship. 

/

/

_"Now everyone," Yang Xiao Long said, "In a couple of weeks, we'll be having a new person living in the area. It'll be just for a couple of months. All I know is that it's for some cushy internship sponsored by the Kingdom of Menagerie. But that's besides the point! Just like with Dove, I want everyone here to welcome this new grad student with open arms. We're all going to be good neighbors, everyone understand?"_

_"What's his name?" Neptune asked as he sipped his beer._

_"First off, it's a 'she'. Second, I believe her name is Blake Belladonna?"_

_"Well, well, well," Sun said, trying not to grin, "A female college student coming all the way from Menagerie to Vacuo. She must be cute."_

_"You don't know that," Yang said, raising an eyebrow as she looked at Sun, "You haven't even seen what this girl looks like."_

_"Well, with a cute name like 'Blake Belladonna', I'm willing to bet you thirty liens that she's an absolute stunner!"_

_Yang stared at Sun. After pondering the bet, she smiled at Sun and said, "You're on, Wukong."_

_/_

_/_

"That's supposed to be a girl!" Sun said excitedly. Without thinking twice, Sun drove off the road and towards Blake's truck. 

Sun cheered and hollered loudly as he imagined what this Menagerian college student looked like. Since she was apparently from some major metropolitan city, highly intelligent due to her being a graduate student, and had loads of money in order to afford the trip from Menagerie to Vacuo, Sun couldn't help but imagine Blake as this gorgeous supermodel. Even though he had never seen a picture of her before today, in his mind, he had already decided that she probably looked like the star of some big-budget blockbuster movie. 

"You will have long, blonde hair!" Sun said, listing out the traits he was pretty sure Blake had, "Big, green eyes! World-class breasts! An ass that won't quit! And legs that go ALL the way up!"

Neptune chuckled as Sun brought the truck to a screeching halt. They had reached Blake's truck by the end of Sun's excited rambling. Since Sun brought the truck to a sudden stop, he kicked up some of the dust and sand, blocking their view. As the dust and sand cleared away, Sun and Neptune looked ahead...and saw Blake Belladonna, who was crouching down to inspect some of the plants growing in the area.

Although both men still thought she was pretty, she was nowhere near Sun's description of her. Instead of looking like a supermodel or some A-list superstar, she was wearing cargo shorts and a modest-looking plain red shirt. She was wearing a boater hat and was holding a clipboard in her hand, which she used to keep track of her findings. As Blake walked towards them, Sun and Neptune noticed she had some white chalk on her nose. Her overall look screamed "grad student doing research for her projects" rather than "gorgeous model who decided to move out to the middle of nowhere for some reason". Sun's smile dropped when he realized that he overhyped himself. 

_Damn it Sun,_ he thought to himself, _of course she looks like a nerd, she's doing research! Pull yourself together, man!_

Blake walked to Neptune's side of the truck and Neptune lowered his window to talk to her. Blake then held out her hand, which Neptune shook. "Hi!" Blake said, excited to meet new people, "I'm Blake! Blake Belladonna. I'm up here for the semester."

"Yeah, geography, right?" Neptune asked.

"Geology," Sun snapped at his friend. Since Sun was so excited to meet Blake (and, because of his bet with Yang Xiao Long), Sun still remembered the details from the townhall meeting in which they discussed Blake's imminent arrival.

Or...at least that's what Sun thought. Although he was trying, Sun didn't quite remember all the details from that meeting. Blake chuckled at the cowboy-faunus, then said, "Yeah, well, actually...it's seismology. Earthquakes." 

Neptune grinned at Sun, silently laughing at how he just got corrected after being so confident with his answer. Sun didn't bother to respond to Neptune.

"And you two must be Sun and Neptune," Blake continued, "I've heard all about you!" 

Neptune chuckled at that, taking a liking to the grad student's energy. "Well, we deny everything!" Neptune said, jokingly. This got Blake to chuckle...and Sun to turn away, still annoyed at Neptune.

After chuckling at Neptune's joke, a thought occurred to Blake. She had only been in Kenyte for a few days but she was already picking up on some weird activity in the area. It wasn't earthquakes per se, but enough to cause some alarm. "Hey, listen, I've got a question for you," Blake said, "Do you know if anybody's doing any drilling or blasting...or anything like that?"

At that, Sun had to laugh. He couldn't help it; there was nothing to do in Kenyte, as well as nothing of true value. If Dust had existed around these parts, those reserves would've been found years ago. Kenyte was as dry and barren as it could get. "Around here?" Sun said to Blake, "No, ma'am." 

Blake frowned. _But...what the hell am I picking up on my graphs then,_ Blake thought to herself. "Well, I'm supposed to monitor the seismographs," she said out loud. Sensing the blank stares coming from Neptune and Sun, Blake said, "You know, they measure vibrations."

Sun, picking up on what Blake was trying to get at, tapped Neptune on his shoulder to get his attention. "She means vibrations in the ground," Sun said. Blake nodded at that, happy that the cowboy-faunus wasn't as dumb as she thought he was. 

"Yeah, that's right!" Blake continued, "Well, I've been getting some really strange readings. I mean, the school's had these machines up here for three years, and we've never recorded anything like this." 

Not sure what to make of this whole situation, Neptune shrugged. "Well, we'll ask around," he said to Blake, "You know, see if anyone's heard anything."

"Thanks," Blake said, appreciating the assistance, "God, I hope they're not broken. I might have to bag the whole semester. Anyway, sorry to bother you!" 

Neptune turned to Sun to gauge his reaction to Blake saying that she might leave the area earlier than she thought. He was slightly disappointed when he saw that Sun had no reaction, despite being the one who was so excited to meet Blake. 

Sensing that the conversation was coming to an end, Sun started his truck up again. As he pulled away from Blake, Neptune leaned out the window and said, "No problem! Nice meeting you! Hope you get it all sorted out!"

Blake waved the two cowboys off as the truck disappeared from her sight. Although they weren't the brightest people she had ever met, it was still nice to make new friends. _Well Blake, you nailed that conversation without embarrassing yourself,_ she thought to herself, _they didn't think you were awkward and you didn't look weird or anything-_

Suddenly, Blake became too aware of the substance on her nose. As she touched her face, she realized that she had some white dirt on her nose as a result of exploring the area. Blake groaned as she wondered if those two cowboys were talking about her and how ridiculous she looked with a white, dusty nose. 

_Damn it, Blake, can't you go one conversation WITHOUT embarrassing yourself!?_

* * *

Back to Sun and Neptune...

As Sun focused on the road, Neptune turned to him, still grinning from their conversation with Blake. She seemed like a sweet girl, although Neptune couldn't help but laugh at his friend for overhyping himself up for meeting Blake. "You know, if you wanted," Neptune said, "We could take a look at those...uh...seismographs for her if you want."

Much to Neptune's surprise, Sun didn't look interested. "What the hell do we know about seismographs?" Sun snapped. 

Neptune shrugged. "Nothing, I guess. But it sure might be a slick way to get to know her."

"Why?"

And at that, Neptune had to sigh. Having been friends with Sun for so many years, he instantly knew what the problem was. Although Sun was a good guy, his standards for women that he wanted to date were way too high. Since Blake didn't fit with his very specific list of characteristics, he had already moved on. Not that Neptune cared about his friend's love life, but he was annoyed that Sun had already written Blake off.

"Damn it, Sun," Neptune said, "You don't go for any gal unless she fits that stupid list of yours from top to bottom!"

"Well, sure!" Sun shouted back, trying to defend himself. Sure, Blake seemed like a nice gal...but to him, the list came first.

"Yeah, and it's dumber than my hind end! I mean, like that...crap, what's-her-face...uh...oh, Lucy Nails!"

Sun rolled his eyes, then lowered his sun-visor. On it were pictures of a gorgeous blonde woman with big, green eyes, world-class breasts (at least, in Sun's opinion), an ass that won't quit (also in Sun's opinion), and legs that go all the way up (both Sun and Neptune agreed on this point). "That was Dew Gayl!" Sun shouted, correcting his friend. To hammer in his point, he tapped on Dew's picture, specifically the one where she looked the hottest. 

Neptune resisted the urge to facepalm. He's seen Sun's photo collection before and it still annoyed him that Sun still considered Dew the 'gold standard' of potential dates. "Man, it don't matter!" Neptune said to Sun, getting more annoyed at his friend's attitude, "They're all the same, dead weight! 'Ooh, I broke a nail, come save me Sun'! Ugh...it makes my skin crawl."

"Well...I'm a victim of circumstance," Sun answered back. 

Neptune glared at Sun for that. "I thought you call it your pecker," he snarked. 

Sun didn't both answering back. Instead, he chose to just glare at Neptune. 

* * *

Setting: Kenyte, Vacuo

**CITY OF**

**"KENYTE"**

**EST. 1902**

**POPULATION: 14 / ELEV.: 2135**

Sun and Neptune drove into the territory of the small, desert settlement of Kenyte. They knew they were close since after passing the Kenyte sign, the road suddenly became paved. It was some semblance of modern civilization, even though the town was in the middle of nowhere. When Sun and Neptune finally arrived at the settlement, there was not much for both men to look at; there was Li Ren's General Store (which was the main hub of business for the entire settlement, acting as a general store, post office, arcade, city hall, and so on), small homes for the residents of Kenyte, torn-up fences that Sun and Neptune still needed to fix, and...that was mainly it. The fact that the general store was the center of the town was proof enough of just how dead the area of Kenyte was. 

Sun parked his truck in front of the general store. As he and Neptune stepped out, they noticed the unofficial town idiot, Whitley Schnee, playing basketball by himself (or, rather, he was bouncing the ball around to keep himself from getting bored). "Hey, pizza face!" Sun snarked at the white-haired boy.

Whitley rolled his eyes at both Sun and Neptune. He then went back to bouncing his ball. Much to Neptune's annoyance, Whitley began bouncing his basketball off of the car next to Sun and Neptune's truck, not caring about how he was making a dent in the car. 

"Whitley!" Neptune snapped, "Whitley! You touch that truck and die!"

Whitley stopped bouncing his ball, unshaken by Neptune's threat. Turning to the blue-haired man, Whitley sarcastically said, "Oh, man, I'm really shaking!"

Neptune groaned in disgust, then followed Sun inside the store. He made a mental note to himself to complain to Whitley's sister, Weiss, about his behavior later. 

Inside, general store owner Li Ren was talking to Kenyte's resident doomsday prepper couple, Ruby Rose and her wife Weiss. Based on the items on the counter, it looked like they were arguing about ammunition. Ruby looked especially disappointed at the boxes in front of her as she examined each bullet like a teacher grading her students' assignments. "Thanks Li," Ruby said, trying to not sound annoyed, "Look, these are hollow points, but they're not Ironwood-Tech hollow points."

Li scoffed at the red-hooded woman, unsure why she was making a big deal about all of this. "Well, excuse me," he said, "I thought bullets were bullets." Before Ruby could raise an objection, Li Ren walked away to handle some stuff in the backroom.

Sun and Neptune took the seats next to Ruby and Weiss. Weiss turned to the two cowboys and smiled at them. "Hi guys," she said, trying to ignore her wife's disappointed looks, "What you been doing?"

"Well, we ran into that new college student," Sun replied, "That Blaine."

"Blake," Neptune corrected. As Neptune took his seat next to Sun, Li came back from the backroom with two cold beers for the cowboys. He opened them and Sun immediately took a sip. "Yeah, she's having some trouble with her, uh...uh...things."

Ruby turned to Neptune and Sun. She looked concerned at the mention of the grad student who just moved into the area, not liking the idea of a stranger (especially a foreign one) suddenly moving in. "You know," Ruby said, cautiously, "Those international college students turn up oil, uranium, or Dust or something out there...next thing, the kingdom's military will be at our door. 'Sorry. Time to move. Eminent domain!' Don't say I didn't warn you all!"

Weiss Schnee rolled her eyes and turned to gently pat Ruby on her back. She's heard this rant from her wife before. "Down, honey, down," Weiss said, trying to stop Ruby from going into a full-blown monologue about the Vacuan government. Ruby just smiled back at Weiss, appreciating the pats on her back. 

"Yeah, Ruby," Sun said, already annoyed at Ruby's paranoia, "The way you worry, you'll have a heart attack before you get a chance to survive another Great War or Faunus Rights Revolution."

Ruby scoffed at both Weiss and Sun. "We'll see, we'll see," she said as she went back to inspecting the boxes of ammunition in front of her.

**WHIIIIIIRRR-BI-BI-BI-BI-BI-BI-BI-BI-BI-BI-BI!**

Sun, Neptune, Ruby, Weiss, and Li Ren all turned around at the direction of the strange, metallic sounds coming from the ice machine. Li cursed out loud when he realized it was the machine shutting down again. Something in the wiring was messed up, causing the machine to have these frequent shutdowns. 

"Hey guys, listen!" Li said to Sun and Neptune, "Bearing going out! What do you think?"

Sun shrugged. There were a couple reasons Sun could think of for why the ice machine was going out, the bearing being one of them. "Could be," Sun simply said. 

Before Sun could walk over to fix the machine, Neptune grabbed him by the arm to stop him. "Uh...catch you later, Li," Neptune quickly said, "We got a schedule to keep."

"Oh yeah," Sun said, remembering Neptune's planner, "See, we plan ahead. That way, we don't do anything right now. Neptune explained it to me."

* * *

Back to Blake...

It's been a few hours since the two cowboys had left the area. Since they left, not much has happened with Blake. It was just another boring day in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by dust, sand, rocks, and desert plant life. Unbeknownst to Blake, though, something was indeed happening. It just wasn't something she could see. As she reviewed her notebooks and graphs, the ground started to shake. It was not enough for Blake to notice...but it was strong enough to cause some dirt to move. 

Although she was tired from all of her work, Blake placed one of the university's motion trackers into a ditch she had dug up. She then began burying the tracker with a nearby shovel. As she did, the seismograph that the tracker was connected to started whirring. It wasn't picking up much so far, the needle only slightly shaking.

After she finished burying the tracker, Blake sat down on the ground and grabbed her notepad. She then wrote in her log to keep track of her actions. As she wrote...it happened.

**SHI-SHICK! SHI-SHICK!**

The needle on the seismograph suddenly shook as it picked up a large vibration. It then shook again when it picked up a second one. 

Blake looked at her watch. _Wow...it's getting late,_ she thought to herself when she saw the time, _guess I can pack up for today. I can leave some of the equipment here anyways._ Blake stood up and grabbed the gear she could bring. She was a bit disappointed with today's results but at the same time, she didn't expect to pick up any big vibrations anyways. 

/

/

The Creep sensed its prey moving. Without making its presence known, the Creep began to move through the dirt, hoping to reach whatever poor creature was making all that noise. The dirt rose and fell as it moved towards its prey, like a shark moving through open water.

/

/

Blake packed the equipment in the back of her truck. After making sure her equipment was secured, she walked to the driver's seat and hopped inside. She then started her truck, ready to make her way back to Kenyte.

/

/

The Creep moved in, ready to make a kill. It was just about to strike when-

/

/

Blake closed the door. She then began driving away from the area, completely unaware just how close to death she was at that moment. 

* * *

Back to Sun and Neptune...

Due to today being garbage day, Sun and Neptune were in Kenyte's designated landfill. The landfill wasn't much; there were a couple of old, unused cars nearby, a semi-trailer, and a ton of trash. Both cowboys got to work by compiling the town's trash into a pile for disposal. While Sun was picking up trash bags by hand, Neptune was using a track loader in order to push the garbage around. 

Much to Sun's frustration, one of the bags that he knelt down to grab tore open. Several soda cans spilled out, most of them landing by Sun's feet. Annoyed, Sun tossed the torn-up trash bag to the ground as he realized he had to pick all these cans up. Not in the mood to do so, Sun walked away to sit in the makeshift lounge that he and Neptune set up in the area. The lounge literally consisted of three pieces of furniture; a beaten-up recliner chair, a broken-down sofa with springs coming out of the seats, and a broken toilet bowl that they used as a table. 

After pushing all the trash away, Neptune turned the track loader off and walked over to Sun to join him at the lounge. Sun sat in the recliner while Neptune took a seat on the broken sofa. 

"Cocktail?" Sun asked Neptune as he reached into the toilet bowl. He pulled out a can of beer, which Neptune eagerly took.

"You bet," Neptune said, tiredly. He opened the can and took a sip. Although the beer was a bit warm, he chose to ignore it. He needed a beer after today's dirty work. 

Sun sat back in his seat. As he took a sip of his beer, a couple of flies showed up, attracted to the scent that the recliner chair was giving off. Sun swatted them all away, accidentally smacking his face as he did. It was at that moment, Sun became too aware of where he was; he was in the middle of a landfill in order to sort out garbage, drinking beer that was sitting inside a broken toilet bowl, relaxing on a thrown-out chair that was attracting flies, and doing all this for just fifty liens. And to top it all off...he was still living in the middle of nowhere. "Well, I'll tell you," Sun said, quietly pondering his life up until this point, "Nobody handles garbage better than we do."

"Yep," Neptune said, sounding disappointed in himself.

And at that, Sun realized he couldn't even fake his enthusiasm for the job. If there was a way to represent what hitting rock bottom looked like, this was it. "Oh, come on, Neptune...now this is low. We have got to set our sights a little bit higher."

* * *

Setting: The Schnee's home

**LI REN'S**

**U**

**RENT**

**CESSPOOL-SEPTIC PUMP**

Another reason why Sun and Neptune despised garbage day; cleaning out the septic tanks. Not only did they have to deal with the town's trash, they had to deal with literal shit. As both men started moving the pumps from the septic tank in order to get the process going, Whitley Schnee sat back in his seat, watching them from the comforts of his porch (or, at least the front of his trailer). 

"Hey, Whitley, why don't you give us a hand?" Sun snarked at the white-haired boy, "Most of this shit is yours anyway."

Whitley shook his head. "Listen, run down to the store and pick me up a six-pack," he said, mocking both cowboys, "I'll pay for it, even!"

"Son, beer is for adults!" Neptune snapped at him. 

After making sure the pump was fully hooked into the ground, Neptune and Sun made their way back to the tank to start the process. Neptune looked pissed; just like Sun, he was contemplating about where he was in life and the fact that he was literally working with feces. This all felt beneath him. "You know, not having a plan is what keeps us doing jobs like this!" Neptune snapped at Sun.

Sun glared at Neptune, not wanting to have this conversation again. "Just doing jobs like this is you dragging your feet!" Sun shouted back. 

"Are you gonna stand there and tell me, in broad daylight, that I'm the reason we're still in Kenyte!? Sun, you know how close I am to leaving this place right now?!"

"I'll call that little bluff. How close?"

**GRRRRRRRRRRRRR!**

Before Neptune could answer, the pipe suddenly burst. Whitley Schnee laughed as both Sun and Neptune began panicking. They weren't sure what was worse; getting splattered by people's wastes, the smell of the liquid coming out of the pipe, the humiliation of this moment, or Whitley laughing his ass off at their expense. Both handymen scrambled around, trying to shut the machine down as they continued to be drenched in black, tarry, foul-smelling liquid. For Whitley, this was the funniest day of his life. For Sun and Neptune...it was a sign from the gods that they needed to get out of this dead-end town. 

* * *

Time: Several hours later...

After both Sun and Neptune each took long, long, long showers, the two men were ready to leave Kenyte once and for all. They had packed up everything in their truck and filled the gas tank with enough to reach Coquina, which was the closest settlement to Kenyte. As Neptune finished loading up the last of their equipment, Sun rushed out of his trailer. He was carrying a vacuum cleaner, which confused Neptune.

"Don't forget the TV!" Sun shouted as he approached the truck. 

"Hey, what's that vacuum cleaner for, man?" Neptune asked. 

"I like this vacuum cleaner!" 

"Hell, you never use it!"

"Well, it's good for parts."

At that, Neptune didn't question Sun. As Sun dropped the vacuum cleaner in the back, Neptune picked up and stuffed their TV as well. With that, the cowboys were ready to finally leave Kenyte and start anew someplace else. Although Coquina was their destination, their main goal was to just not return to this particular settlement. 

Sun was feeling good about this move. Although he was still wary about finding work and starting over in a different area, he was more than happy to leave Kenyte just for the sake of leaving. After today's incident with the septic pump, Kenyte was starting to feel like a bad omen. "And besides," Sun said to Neptune, still thinking about the vacuum cleaner he stuck in the back, "Maybe we'll hire a maid. Now had you thought about that, Neptune?"

"Get in the truck," Neptune snapped, not bothering to answer Sun. Sun hopped into the shotgun seat while Neptune got into the driver's seat. Neptune then started the truck and pulled away from their trailer. As he reversed, he grabbed the sign which read their names that was on top of their mailbox. They were even taking their nameplates with them. Although they liked the people of Kenyte, they didn't want to leave any trace of their presence in this area. 

Now ready to leave the settlement, Neptune drove towards the main road, back to where they had come in from earlier. Before he could exit the town, Neptune had to stop when he saw a woman waving at him. Sun silently cursed when he recognized the woman as Terra Cotta-Arc. She lived right next door to Sun and Neptune. Her son, Adrian Cotta-Arc, was playing on his pogo-stick down the road. 

"Guys!" Terra said as she waved the two cowboys down, "Hey guys, wait!"

"Sorry, Terra," Sun said, "We're not delivering firewood anymore. We're heading for Coquina permanent."

Terra nodded her head, feeling skeptical of the two's commitment to their move. "Oh, sure you are," she said, jokingly. But then she turned and saw that the trunk was filled to the brim with their equipment and furniture. "Oh my God, you really are!"

As Terra gawked at the back of Sun and Neptune's truck, Adrian hopped his way over to the adults. He wasn't curious about what they were talking about, it was just that his hopping on the pogo-stick pushed him in their direction. Hearing Adrian's pogo-stick hopping, Neptune asked, "Hey Adrian, what's the count?" 

"Six hundred and forty!" Adrian said excitedly as he hopped past Terra, Sun, and Neptune. As he moved out of sight, Terra turned back to the two cowboys. 

"Guys, look, I don't need firewood," Terra said, "I have this big order to fill, and I have to build my new pottery kiln. Come on, it'll be at least a month's work! I'll throw in lunches! And beer!"

Sun and Neptune didn't budge at the mention of more work and lunches. However, at the mention of beer, Sun turned to Neptune. Neptune looked back at Sun, realizing what they would be losing if they continued their move out of Kenyte.

 _Look, I want to leave this place too but...free beer,_ Sun thought, hoping Neptune could hear his thought process.

 _I mean...the free beer does sound awfully tempting,_ Neptune thought, hoping Sun could hear his thought process.

* * *

Setting: A few miles away from Kenyte

Sun and Neptune cheered and hollered as they made their way down the road, away from Kenyte. They felt proud of themselves; despite Terra's tempting offer, they were committing to their mission of starting new lives in Coquina. While it hurt to disappoint Terra, it still felt good to finally be free from the town. 

"I can't believe we said no to free beer!" Sun cheered.

"We did it!" Neptune cheered back, "We did it! We faced temptation and did not bend! God damn, praise the Twin Brothers!"

"Ha, exactly! Now there's nothing, and I mean nothing, between us and Coquina but nothing!"

"Yeah!" "Yeah!" Sun and Neptune high-fived each other as their truck raced down the road. 

A few minutes later...

Neptune and Sun looked up, realizing they were approaching a set of electrical towers. Although Neptune didn't see it since his eyes were on the road, Sun immediately noticed that there was someone sitting on one of the towers. The person didn't look like a repairman, which instantly set off some alarms in Sun's mind. "Hey, look at that guy," he said to Neptune, pointing the guy out. 

"Oh, that's one job I'd never do," Neptune said, missing Sun's point, "Working around electricity." 

As Neptune drove closer and closer to the electrical towers, Sun got a better look at the man in the tower. Based on his shaggy hair and his lion's tail indicating that he was a lion faunus, Sun immediately recognized who the tower man was. But this realization only confused Sun even further. "Hey, hold up!" he said, "That's Leonardo Lionheart!"

Neptune chuckled. "Oh come on, really?" he said. It seemed too ridiculous for him. Leonardo Lionheart was just the town drunk, why would he be hanging out on top of an electrical tower? 

"No, I'm serious! I could recognize that beard and his tail from a mile away! Trust me, I'm a faunus, I would know! That's him, I'm telling you!"

Taking Sun's word for it, Neptune drove off the road and parked the car near the electrical tower where Lionheart was. Both men stepped out of the truck and looked up to get a closer look at Lionheart. 

"Man, oh, man," Neptune said, shaking his head when he realized that it really was Lionheart, "He sure must've been drunk this time. Lionheart, get your butt down from there!"

No response. Now, both men were concerned. Although it was funny to see Lionheart sitting on top of the electrical tower, the fact that he wasn't responding to either of them made them feel that something was off here. 

"Well...shit," Sun said, "We can't leave him up there." Sun then turned to Neptune, not wanting to be the one to get Lionheart.

Predictably, Neptune raised his fist for another round of rock, paper scissors. Sun sighed and raised his fist to play. 

Sun threw paper...and Neptune threw scissors. _My luck, it's almost as bad as Ruby's uncle,_ Sun thought to himself. Neptune smirked at him, then stepped back to let Sun make the climb up. 

"Thank you, Lionheart," Sun sarcastically muttered to himself. He then walked up to the tower and began climbing the rungs to reach Lionheart. "You owe me on this one, you damned old boozehound! One of these days, you're gonna have to get your ass on a wagon and stay there. Holy Brothers...it's not like I don't have better things to do than to climb towers and drag your hairy ass down...what in the hell..."

Sun Wukong couldn't believe what he was seeing. As soon as he reached Lionheart, he saw that the man was long dead. He had his rifle in his hands and his face was dried up and sunburnt, as if he had been sitting in this tower for some time now. He had an agonized expression on his face, indicating that his death was painful. Just the look of Lionheart's face sent chills down Sun's spine.

_Holy shit...who did this to you, old man?_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Based on: Tremors (1990)
> 
> Trailers:  
> 1) "Grimm-Woman Begins" = Batman Begins (2005)  
> 2) "The Stalking, Tenacious Demon" = It Follows (2014)  
> 3) "The Jerk and the Dreamer" = A Walk to Remember (2002) 
> 
> AN1: In case the joke wasn't obvious, the initials for "Stalking, Tenacious Demon" is STD. :P
> 
> AN2: For those of you who have never watched "A Walk to Remember"...let's just say that there's a pretty heavy reason why Jaune and Velvet's romance comes off as melodramatic.
> 
> AN3: Yes, I know that Sun comes off as a bit of a dick in this chapter. Don't worry Sun fans, Val does get better as the movie plays out.
> 
> AN4: Since I'm probably not going to do "Tremors 2: Aftershocks", I will say that if I were to cast that movie, Emerald Sustrai would be Dr. Kate Reilly and Mercury Black would be Grady Hoover.


	38. Into the Music-Verse (First Edition)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A peek into a universe where the cast of RWBY are world-famous musicians...

**Song 1: "Institutionalized" by the infamous hardcore punk rock/thrash metal band, the White Fang**

**Band members**

  1. Frontman: Adam Taurus (the band's new frontman after their previous frontman, Sienna Khan, left for unknown reasons)
  2. Bassist: Ilia Amitola (replacing Blake Belladonna after she left the band to pursue a solo career) 
  3. Lead guitarist: Fennec Albain
  4. Rhythm guitarist: Corsac Albain
  5. Drummer: Yuma 



[(original music video, watch if you need to get a feel for the song) ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LoF_a0-7xVQ&ab_channel=BlankTV)

[(the instrumental for the song)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3xIePbCxzDk&ab_channel=TwilightTrio-Topic)

**Adam Taurus (verse 1)**

Being a faunus in today's society

You have to get used to being treated by humans in a certain "fashion"

Sometimes it's the petty shit like, "Wow, can I touch your horns?"

And sometimes, it's the awful shit like, "Go back to the zoo, you animal!"

And it gets frustrating after a while 

Because, why do faunus get treated differently just by how we look?

Just because we have animal traits, we deserve to get shitted on?

But some people tell me, "Not all humans are like that!" 

"Humans can be our allies too!"

And then I go, "If they want to be our allies-"

"-then they should go after those of them that discriminate us!"

"A true human ally would be willing to go after their own people"

Because what the hell is the point of an ally if they bail on us when we need them the most"

It's not enough to just tell people that faunus need to be treated equally!

But then those same people tell me, "Adam, that's too much-"

"-it's enough for humans to support our cause-"

"-you can't expect humans to fight against their own!"

I'm like, "Fuck that noise!"

"I don't give a shit about that Kumbaya crap!"

But people keep telling me that violence is not the answer and it pisses me off

Over and over, they keep telling me the SAME WRONG ANSWER

And it builds and it builds up inside!

**Adam Taurus (Pre-Chorus)**

So you're gonna be institutionalized

You'll come out brainwashed with bloodshot eyes

You won't have any say

They'll brainwash you until you see their way

**Adam Taurus (Chorus)**

I'm not crazy! ( **White Fang:** Institutionalized!)

You're the one that's crazy! ( **White Fang:** Institutionalized!)

You're driving me crazy! ( **White Fang:** Institutionalized!)

They stuck me in an institution

Said it was the only solution

To give me the needed professional help

To protect from the enemy myself

**Adam Taurus (Verse 2)**

I was in my room, wondering what the hell is going on with my fellow faunus since I was having a really shitty day 

Then Blake comes into my room, and she looks mad as hell

I ask her, "Why the fuck are you so mad, I didn't do anything."

And Blake says, "I'm leaving you because you're too hateful."

And I'm staring at her, wondering what the fuck's gotten into her

Because last time I checked, Blake believed in the band's message!

Now all of a sudden, I'm too hateful?

When SHE was the one who helped me write our hit songs!

And then Blake goes, "I've been talking to Yang-"

"-and she tells me that I don't have to be so angry all the time."

"That I can make music that's welcoming."

"So that's why I'm leaving the band."

And I'm like, "What the flying fuck does Yang know about the struggles of the faunus!?"

"Is she secretly a faunus?!"

"Does she have a tail coming out her asshole!?"

"Because she's talking as if she's a fucking faunus!"

And Blake shouts, "Adam, calm down!"

"Just accept my choice!"

She tells me that I should accept her choice!

Her choice to abandon the faunus cause!

Because of what a HUMAN told her!

**Adam Taurus (Pre-Chorus)**

They give you a white shirt with long sleeves

Tied around your back, you're treated like thieves

Drug you up because they're lazy

It's too much work to help a crazy

**Adam Taurus (Chorus)**

I'm not crazy! ( **White Fang:** Institutionalized!)

You're the one that's crazy! ( **White Fang:** Institutionalized!)

You're driving me crazy! ( **White Fang:** Institutionalized!)

They stuck me in an institution

Said it was the only solution

To give me the needed professional help

To protect from the enemy myself

**Adam Taurus (Verse 3)**

I'm sitting in my room, and I start watching MTV because I was bored

And there I see those fucking Schnees being interviewed by Ozpin

They go, "The Schnees support faunus rights"

"We have always been in favor of uplifting the faunus community"

"We Schnees have NEVER discriminated the faunus ever"

"We're humani-fucking-tarians!"

"Our souls are as pure and white as our fucking clothes!"

"You can trust us rich, upper-class people!"

"We Schnees have never done anything wrong ever!"

"We've NEVER exploited the faunus for labor!"

"We've NEVER treated the faunus like animals!"

And I just throw my remote at my fucking TV

How can you, Jacques Schnee, claim to be pro-faunus!?

How can you, Willow Schnee, claim to be pro-faunus!?

How can you, Winter Schnee, claim to be pro-faunus!?

How can you, Whitley Schnee, claim to be pro-faunus!?

How can you, Weiss Schnee, claim to be pro-faunus!?

I WORKED in your fucking mines!

I STILL have your brandmark ON MY FACE!

So how can you say I'm crazy?!

**Adam Taurus (Pre-Chorus)**

They say they're gonna fix my brain

Alleviate my suffering and my pain

But by the time they fix my head

Mentally, I'll be dead

**Adam Taurus (Chorus)**

I'm not crazy! ( **White Fang:** Institutionalized!)

You're the one that's crazy! ( **White Fang:** Institutionalized!)

You're driving me crazy! ( **White Fang:** Institutionalized!)

They stuck me in an institution

Said it was the only solution

To give me the needed professional help

To protect from the enemy myself

**Adam Taurus (Outro - spoken)**

It doesn't matter, I'll probably get killed by the humans anyway

* * *

**Song 2: "Yang's Mom (Has Got It Going On)" by the pop-punk band, the Reincarnations**

**Band members**

  1. Frontman and rhythm guitar: Oscar Pine
  2. Lead guitarist: Whitley Schnee 
  3. Bassist: Nadir Shiko
  4. Drummer: Sage Ayana 



[(original music video, watch if you need to get a feel for the song) ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dZLfasMPOU4&ab_channel=FountainsOfWayneVEVO)

[(the instrumental for the song)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qUS1xP7oMtw&ab_channel=TOPKEK)

_(Music video starts up, we see Oscar, Whitley, Nadir and Sage standing at a bus stop, waiting to be picked up. Yang Xiao Long appears and by the way she's looking at Oscar Pine, she's clearly interested in him)_

**Oscar Pine (intro)**

Yang's mom...has got it goin' on 

Yang's mom...has got it goin' on

Yang's mom...has got it goin' on

Yang's mom...has got it goin' on 

_(Scene: Raven Branwen has showed up to pick up Yang from school. The entire band gawks at her, completely head over heels for Yang's mom._ _Yang gets in the car. Raven then drives off, with all the band members still staring at her as she exits the lot. During this entire scene, we get a ton of close-ups on Raven's legs and chest, representing the band's stares)_

**Oscar Pine (verse 1)**

Hey Yang, can I come over after scho-oh-oh-oh-ol? **(The Reincarnations:** After-school)

We can hang around by the po-po-po-po-po-po-pool ( **The Reincarnations:** Hang by the pool)

Did your mom get back from her business trip? ( **The Reincarnations:** Business trip)

Is she there...or is she trying to give me the sli-eh-eh-eh-ip? ( **The Reincarnations:** Give me the slip) 

_(Scene: Yang is seen texting Oscar. He asks Yang if he can come over to her house, which she says yes to._ _Oscar is then seen lounging around on a floating pool chair. As he aimlessly floats along the water, Yang appears in a bikini, obviously trying to catch his attention. Yang then does a cannonball into the pool, splashing Oscar with water._ _As Yang swims around Oscar, Oscar notices that Raven is inside the house. She goes to her bedroom where the window blinds are up, allowing anyone to look in and see what she's doing._ _Oscar nearly faints when he sees Raven strip down to her bra and panties. Yang passes a coke to Oscar, unaware of where he's looking)_

**Oscar Pine (pre-chorus 1)**

You know, I'm not the little boy that I used to be

I'm all grown up now, baby, can't you see?

**All the members of the Reincarnations (chorus)**

Yang's mom...has got it going on

She's all I want and I've waited for so long

Yang, can't you see? You're just not the girl for me

**Oscar Pine (ending chorus)**

I know it might be wrong, but I'm in love with Ya-ang's mom

**Oscar Pine (pre-verse 2)**

Yang's mom...has got it goin' on

Yang's mom...has got it goin' on

**Oscar Pine (verse 2)**

Yang, do you remember when I mowed your lawn? ( **The Reincarnations:** Mowed your lawn)

Your mom came out...with just a towel aw-ah-ah-ah-ah-on ( **The Reincarnations:** Towel on)

I could tell she liked me from the way she stared ( **The Reincarnations:** Way she stared)

And the way she said..."You missed a spot over the-eh-eh-eh-ere" ( **The Reincarnations:** Spot over there)

_(Scene: Cut to the front of Yang's house. Yang is sitting on a lawn chair, enjoying the sun while drinking some juice. Oscar is mowing the front lawn._ _Raven Branwen steps out of the house, wearing nothing but a towel. Oscar is caught off-guard and starts staring at her as he keeps pushing the lawnmower forward. Raven makes her way to a massage table, where Clover Ebi the masseuse is ready for her._ _Clover starts massaging Raven as Oscar keeps staring, dumbfounded. Yang is still sipping her juice, oblivious to everything that's happening around her. As Raven turns over in order for Clover to massage her chest, we get a close-up on Clover's face. He smirks at the camera, implying that he's seen Raven's..."chest area"._ _As Clover massages Raven, Oscar accidentally hits a mailbox with the lawnmower.)_

**Oscar Pine (pre-chorus 2)**

And I know that you think it's just a fantasy

But since your dad walked out, your mom could use a guy like me

**All the members of the Reincarnations (chorus)**

Yang's mom...has got it going on

She's all I want and I've waited for so long

Yang, can't you see? You're just not the girl for me

**Oscar Pine (ending chorus)**

I know it might be wrong, but I'm in love with Ya-ang's mom

**(WHITLEY SCHNEE GUITAR SOLO)**

_(Scene: Yang and Oscar are in the house, watching the music video of this song. As Yang is watching, Oscar turns around and sees Raven cleaning up around the house. Suddenly, he starts imagining her doing a striptease for him. The whole kitchen morphs into a stage, complete with a disco ball and stripper pole. Raven's clothes also change into something far more sexy than what she had on before.)_

**All the members of the Reincarnations (chorus)**

Yang's mom has got it goin' on ( **Oscar Pine:** She's got it goin' on)

She's all I want and I've waited for so long ( **Oscar Pine:** Waited and waited)

Yang, can't you see? You're just not the girl for me

**Oscar Pine**

I know it might be wrong, I'm in love with...

**All the members of the Reincarnations (outro)**

Yang's mom, ah-oh-ah-oh ( **Oscar Pine:** I'm in love with-)

Yang's mom, ah-oh-ah-oh ( **Oscar Pine:** Wait a minute)

Yang, can't you see? You're just not the girl for me

**Oscar Pine**

I know it might be wrong but, I'm in love with Ya-ang's mom.

_(Final scene:_ _Oscar drinks a cold glass of water to quench his "thirst". Yang laughs at him since she thinks he's madly attracted to her. Raven Branwen is sitting by the pool in a red, two-piece bikini. From inside the house, Oscar Pine stares at her through the bathroom window. Suddenly, he starts picturing Raven coming out of the pool, seductively staring at Oscar as she does. Oscar closes the blinds on the bathroom window, suddenly embarrassed. Oscar re-opens the blinds and sees Raven still coming out of the swimming pool. He then starts imagining her slowly walking through the sprinklers._

_(Oscar closes his eyes, still focusing on his fantasy of Raven. Yang Xiao Long walks over to the bathroom, unaware that it's occupied. Yang opens the door...then immediately closes it when she sees Oscar inside. It's heavily implied that Oscar was...busy. Oscar stares at the bathroom door, shamefully, while Yang laughs at him from the other side.)_

* * *

**Song 3: "Lady Cinder Fall" - a four-way collab between solo artists Ruby Rose, Weiss Schnee (going under the name "We!ss"), Blake Belladonna (who is just using her first name), and Yang Xiao Long (going under the name "Lil' Yang"). Also featuring Coco Adel to introduce the team**

[(original music video, watch if you need to get a feel for the song) ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RQa7SvVCdZk&ab_channel=CAguileraVEVO)

[(the instrumental for the song)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z5u9IDs-rWI&ab_channel=ChristinaAguileraAud)

**Coco Adel (spoken)**

Ladies and gentlemen! Please give it up for...Team RWBY!

**Yang Xiao Long (rap intro)**

Where's all my soul sista's?

Lemme hear y'all flow sista's

**Team RWBY**

Hey sista', go sista', soul sista', flow sista' ( **Yang:** UH!)

Hey sista', go sista', soul sista', go sista'

**Blake Belladonna**

He met Cinder Fall down in old Mantle City

Strutting her stuff on the street

She said, "Hello, hey Rhodes! You wanna give it a go?" Oh!

Uh-huh!

**Blake Belladonna (with Team RWBY as background vocals)**

Gitchie, gitchie, ya-ya, da-da (Hey, hey, hey!)

Gitchie, gitchie, ya-ya, here (He-e-e-e-e-ere!)

Mocha Chocolata, ya-ya (Ooh, yeah!)

The Fall Maiden, Cinder Fall! ( **Yang:** What-what, what-what, what-what)

**Blake Belladonna**

Oooh-oh-oh-oh, oh!

**Team RWBY**

Voulez-vous coucher avec moi, ce soir? ( **Weiss:** Ah! Uh-ah!)

Voulez-vous coucher avec moi? ( **Yang:** Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah!)

**Weiss "We!ss" Schnee**

He sat in her boudoir while she freshened up!

Boy drank all that Magnolia wine

On her black satin sheets where he started to freak, yeah!

**Weiss "We!ss" Schnee (with Team RWBY as background vocals)**

Gitchie, gitchie, ya-ya, da-da (Da-da-da)

Gitchie, gitchie, ya-ya, here, ooh, yeah, yeah!

Mocha Chocolata, ya-ya (Yeah, yeah)

The Fall Maiden, Cinder Fa-ahhhhhhhhhhhhh-all! Uh!

**Team RWBY**

Voulez-vous coucher avec moi, ce soir? ( **Yang:** Ce soir! What, what, what!)

Voulez-vous coucher avec moi? ( **Weiss:** Ooooooooooh!)

**Yang Xiao Long (rapping portion)**

Yeah, yeah, uh

We come through with the money and the garter belts

Let him know we about that cake straight out the gate (Uh!)

We independent women, some mistake us for whores

I'm saying, "Why spend mine, when I can spend yours?"

Disagree? Well, that's you, and I'm sorry

I'mma keep playing these cats out like Amity

Wear high heel shoes, get love from the dudes

Four badass chicks from the City of Vale, uh! ( **Weiss:** City of Vale!)

**Team RWBY**

Hey sista's, soul sista's, betta get that dough, sista's

**Yang Xiao Long (rapping portion)**

We drink wine with powdered Dust in the glass

By the case, the meaning of expensive taste

If you wanna Gitchie, Gitchie, ya-ya (Come on)

Mocha Chocolata (What?)

The Fall Maiden Cinder Fall

One more time, c'mon now

**Team RWBY**

Cinder...Fall ( **Ruby:** HOOOH-OH-OH-OH!)

Cinder...Fall ( **Blake:** Ooh, yeah, yeah!)

Cinder...Fall ( **Ruby:** NOOOOO-OH-OH-OH, YEAH!)

**Ruby Rose**

HEY! HEY! HEYYYYYYYY-EY-EY-EY-EY!

TOUCH of her SKIN, feeling SILKY smooth, OH!

Color of café au LAIT, ALRIGHT!

Made the savage beast inside roar until he cried-

**Team RWBY**

-More ( **Yang:** More)

More ( **Weiss:** More)

More! ( **Ruby:** MOOOORRRREE!)

**Blake and Weiss**

Now he's back home doin' 9 to 5 ( **Ruby:** 9 to 5-uh-ive!)

**Blake Belladonna**

He's living the grey flannel life!

**Ruby Rose**

But when he...turns off to sleep, ME-EH-MO-RIES creep!

**Team RWBY**

More ( **Yang:** More)

More ( **Weiss:** More)

More! ( **Ruby:** MOOOOHHH-AH-OH-AH-OH-AH-ORRRREE!)

**Team RWBY**

Gitchie, gitchie, ya-ya, da-da (Da-da, yeah)

Gitchie, gitchie, ya-ya, here (Ooh!)

Mocha Chocolata, ya-ya (Yeah)

**Ruby Rose**

THE FALL MAIDEN CINDER FA-AHHH-AH-AH-AH-ALL! ( **WBY:** Yeah, yeah, yeah!)

**Team RWBY**

Voulez-vous coucher avec moi, ce soir? ( **Weiss:** Ce soir!)

Voulez-vous coucher avec moi? ( **Blake:** All my sistas, yeah!)

**Ruby Rose** **(with Team RWBY as background vocals)**

VOULEZ-VOUS COUCHER AVEC MOI, CE SOIR?! ( **Yang:** Ce soir)

VOULEZ-VOUS COUCHER AVEC MOI? OHHH-UH! ( **Yang:** C'mon! uh)

**Coco Adel (spoken)**

Ruby Rose

**Ruby Rose**

OH-LAY-AY-AY-AY-AY-AY-AY-OH!

**Coco Adel (spoken)**

Weiss

**Weiss "We!ss" Schnee**

Maiiii-den, Cinder Fa-ahhhh-all!

**Coco Adel (spoken)**

Lil' Yang

**Yang Xiao Long**

Hey! Hey!

Uh, uh, uh, uh, uh, uh, uh!

**Coco Adel (spoken)**

Blake

**Blake Belladonna**

Oh, oh, oh, oo-eh-oh!

**Coco Adel (spoken)**

Rockwilder, baby ( **Blake:** Baeeee-behhh!)

**Coco Adel (spoken)**

Moulin Rouge ( **Ruby:** Oh-ooh) ( **Blake:** Da-da, da-da!)

Misdemeanor here!

**Team RWBY**

THE FALL MAIIII-DENNNN, CINNN-DERRRRR FALLLLLL

OOOHH, OHHH, YESSSS-AH!

* * *

**Song 4: "Schnee Heiress" - by world-famous rockstar, Jaune Arc**

**Jaune's backup team (doing vocals and playing the instruments)**

  1. Flynt Coal
  2. Sun Wukong
  3. Neptune Vasilias
  4. Sage Ayana
  5. Scarlet David
  6. Lie Ren
  7. Cardin Winchester



[(original music video, watch if you need to get a feel for the song) ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hCuMWrfXG4E&list=PLMws9SCqJ1JCeVMVPsdamuUM0HK0MbA6g&index=37&ab_channel=billyjoelVEVO)

[(the instrumental for the song)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bBduUhdIhnI&ab_channel=JohnDoe)

_(Music video opens up on Beacon Academy. Jaune and his backup team are by the parking lot, where they've set up a makeshift shop for people to come in and get their cars worked on. Right now, Jaune and friends are working on a couple of cars. Apparently, they're mechanics on their free time)_

**Jaune Arc (with the backup team)**

Wah-oh-oh-ah-oh-oh-oh

Wah-oh-oh-ah-oh-oh-oh!

**Jaune Arc (verse 1)**

Schnee heiress

She's lived a sheltered life thanks to wealthy parents

I bet she's never had a huntsman guy

I bet her momma never told her why

I'm gonna try for a-

_(Jaune stops working on his car and starts singing. As he sings, a picture of Weiss Schnee modeling a bikini is clearly visible in the locker behind Jaune. Jaune then grabs a magazine from the locker and dances his way back to his team.)_

**Jaune Arc (chorus)**

Schnee heiress

She's spent her whole life treated as a princess

As long as anyone with hot blood can

And now she's looking for a peasant man

That's what I am!

_(Jaune shows off the magazine to his team. Apparently, it's an issue that's all about the Schnees. The Beacon boys then start using their wrenches and screwdrivers as their mics as they continue singing)_

**Jaune Arc (bridge)**

And when she knows...what she wants...from her ti-i-i-i-ime

And when she wakes up...and makes up...her mi-i-i-i-ind

_(Jaune and friends are rocking in sync as a fancy looking white car pulls up on the lot. It's Weiss Schnee, and she's being driven by her chaffeur, Klein Sieben)_

**Jaune Arc (pre-chorus)**

She'll see I'm not so tough

Just because...I'm in love with a-

_(Jaune and friends dance their way to Weiss' car. We then get a look inside the car; Weiss, who is dressed like she's on her way to some fancy ball, looks out the window and smiles at Jaune, clearly amused by his singing and dancing.)_

**Jaune Arc (verse 2)**

Schnee heiress

She wants to break free from her upper-class parents

She's getting tired of her high class toys

And all the presents from her upper-class boys

She's got a choice

_(Jaune and friends starts dancing by Weiss' car. They then pose at the hood of the car. Klein looks out the window, wondering why the mechanics are in the middle of a musical number.)_

**Jaune Arc (with the backup team)**

Whoa-oh-oh-oh-oh-ah-oh-oh-oh-ah-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh

Whoa-oh-oh-oh-oh-ah-oh-oh-oh-ah-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh

**Jaune Arc (verse 3)**

Schnee heiress

I can't afford to buy her jewels of the rarest

But maybe someday when my ship comes in

She'll understand what kind of guy I've been

And then I'll win!

_(Weiss exits the car. She then starts to playfully walk away from Jaune. Jaune and friends follow behind her closely while keeping everything playful. Klein just watches the mechanics and Weiss, a little unamused by their antics but glad that Weiss is having fun.)_

**Jaune Arc (bridge)**

And when she's walking...she's looking...so fi-i-i-i-ine

And when she's talking...she'll say that...she's mi-i-i-i-ine

_(Jaune stands on a cart while his team pushes. They follow Weiss into the garage. Weiss, still messing around with the boys, just casually moves around them. Everything is done in a way that it looks like a synchronized dance.)_

**Jaune Arc (pre-chorus)**

She'll say I'm not so tough

Just because...I'm in love with a-

_(All the cars in the garage suddenly come on, filling the set with bright lights)_

**Jaune Arc (chorus)**

Schnee heiress

She's spent her whole life treated as a princess

As long as anyone with hot blood can

And now she's looking for a peasant man

That's what I am!

_(As Jaune sings and dances in front of all the lights in the garage, Weiss walks by him. She casually grazes his chest with her hand, much to Jaune's joy)_

**Jaune Arc (with the backup team)**

Whoa-oh-oh-oh-oh-ah-oh-oh-oh-ah-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh

Whoa-oh-oh-oh-oh-ah-oh-oh-oh-ah-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh

**Jaune Arc (outro)**

Schnee heiress, she's my Schnee heiress

You know I'm in love with a Schnee heiress, my Schnee heiress

You know I'm in love with a Schnee heiress, my Schnee heiress

You know I'm in love with a Schnee heiress, my Schnee heiress

You know I'm in love with a Schnee heiress...

_(the whole garage, and Klein, are now dancing along to the song. At the end, Jaune takes Weiss away on a motorcycle. Weiss giggles as she lets her hair down and clings onto Jaune as he drives out of the lot)_

* * *

**Song 5: "Monkey D. Luffy" by the comedy group, Not-in-Kansas (feat. adult contemporary star Roman Torchwick)**

**Band members**

  1. James "The Tin Man" Ironwood
  2. Qrow "The Scarecrow" Branwen
  3. Leonardo "The Lion" Lionheart 



[(original music video, watch if you need to get a feel for the song) ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GI6CfKcMhjY&ab_channel=thelonelyisland)

[(the instrumental for the song)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XueMpNASl8Y&ab_channel=TheMoonMan)

**Ciel Soleil, the secretary (spoken)**

Guys, Roman Torchwick is here

**Qrow Branwen (spoken)**

Oh, great, send him in

**Roman Torchwick (spoken)**

Hey, guys!

**Leonardo Lionheart (spoken)**

Hey! Hi! Thanks for coming!

**Roman Torchwick (spoken)**

Sorry I'm late, I just got caught up watching the all-day One Piece marathon. Have you seen that anime yet?

**Not-in-Kansas (all together, spoken)**

Oh, yeah, yeah, those are... those are great

**Roman Torchwick (spoken)**

Well, I checked out the track and I loved it. And I wrote you this big, sexy hook I think you're gonna really dig

**Qrow Branwen (spoken)**

Oh wow, that's great. You wanna just lay it down?

**Roman Torchwick (spoken)**

Boys...lets get to it ᵗᵒ ᶦᵗ ₜₒ ᵢₜ

_(music kicks in)_

**Qrow Branwen (spoken)**

Here we go

Uh, Not-in-Kansas...Roman Torchwick 

**Roman Torchwick**

Yeeeeeeaaaaahhhhh! ( **Not-in-Kansas:** The night starts now)

**Qrow Branwen (spoken)**

Together on the track

The boys are back ( **Not-in-Kansas:** The night starts now)

**Qrow Branwen (rapping)**

The night starts now, baby, roll with us

Chickies snapping at the neck when we rolling up ( **Roman Torchwick:** Rolling up!)

Club front doors, ain't no holding up ( **Roman Torchwick:** Yeah)

Black card at the bar like I gives a fuck! ( **Roman Torchwick:** Come on!)

**James Ironwood (rapping)**

Ladies shifty eyed when we walk into the set

Fuck the fellas looking jealous, play that back and get wet ( **Roman Torchwick:** Yeah, yeah!)

Three pound at my waist, shank in my sock ( **Roman Torchwick:** Oh!)

You either get cut, get stuffed, or get shot!

**Roman Torchwick (singing)**

This is the tale...of Monkey D. Luffy!

A pirate so brave...on the four seas ( **Qrow Branwen:** What?)

A mystical quest...his body was turned to rubber

Gold Roger left everything...in One Piece!

**Leonardo Lionheart (rapping)**

Yeah, that was kind of weird, but we're back in the club!

Buying up the bar so the groupies show us love ( **Roman Torchwick:** Nico Robin!)

Motherfucking iceman, I'm the top gunner

Heater on blast, I'm the number one stunner ( **Roman Torchwick:** Monkey D. Luffy!)

**Qrow Branwen (rapping)**

Watch your girl because I ain't your Mr. Nice Guy

More like the "Meet you, take you home and fuck you twice" guy ( **Roman Torchwick:** Yeah, yeah)

All dressed up with nowhere to run

I know I make you feel crazy when I -

**Roman Torchwick**

-Now back to the good part!

From the day he was born...he yearned for adventure ( **Qrow Branwen:** No!)

Oh, Monkey D. ( **James Ironwood:** Yeah.), giving them what-for

He'll be the king of the pirates ( **James Ironwood:** Uh huh), with the highest of all bounties

But against the Four Emperors, can Luffy prevail? ( **Leonardo Lionheart:** Yeah, we've seen the anime)

**Qrow Branwen (rapping)**

Put your hands in the air and say "Hell yeah," come on!

**Roman Torchwick**

Monkey D! ( **Qrow Branwen:** What?)

Tony Tony! ( **Qrow Branwen:** No.)

**James Ironwood (rapping)**

From the front to the back, say "We count stacks," come on

**Roman Torchwick**

Boa Hancock! ( **James Ironwood:** Nope!)

Snake waifu! ( **James Ironwood:** Wrong)

**Leonardo Lionheart (rapping)**

Roman Torchwick, we're really gonna need you to focus up

**Roman Torchwick**

Roger that, let me try with another anime ( **Qrow Branwen:** Wait!)

My sister is a demon and my name is Tanjiro Kamado ( **Qrow Branwen:** Not better)

Even if I can't see the demons, I can smell them hiding in the shadows ( **James Ironwood:** Come on!)

Okay, then I'm a girl who games, Chiaki Nanami is my name ( **James Ironwood:** Oh God)

Then you can call me Yumeko, gambling all my money like I was insane! ( **Qrow Branwen:** Close enough)

**Roman Torchwick (as Yumeko Jabami)**

You won’t be able to fool anyone if you’re not prepared to shed your own blood.

Okay, let's compulsively gamble!

**Roman Torchwick**

This is the tale...of Yumeko Jabami (this is the tale!)

A crazy transfer student...with red glowing eyes (take it home!)

Got a blonde house pet (yeah!), her facial expressions are scary (woo!)

Money forms the basis...for a capitalist society (for a capitalist society!) (whoa!)

**Qrow Branwen (spoken)**

Okay...it turns out Roman Torchwick is a major otaku 

**Roman Torchwick (spoken)**

Believe it! 

**Qrow Branwen (spoken)**

Yeah...yeah...okay

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Song 1: "Institutionalized" - Suicidal Tendencies
> 
> Song 2: "Stacy's Mom" - Fountains of Wayne
> 
> Song 3: "Lady Marmalade" - the Moulin Rouge cover version, featuring Christina Aguilera, Lil' Kim, Mya, Pink, and Missy Elliot
> 
> Song 4: "Uptown Girl" - Billy Joel
> 
> Song 5: "Jack Sparrow" - The Lonely Island (feat. Michael Bolton)  
> (AN: Just imagine Roman dressing up as Monkey D. Luffy, Tanjiro from Demon Slayer, Chiaki from Danganronpa, and Yumeko from Kakegurui. Cursed or not cursed images?)


	39. Valentine's Day Special 2021 (Part 1 of 2)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Happy Valentine's Day! 
> 
> To celebrate this day of love, enjoy this montage of famous movie/TV show/video game scenes, played out by your favorite RWBY ship...

**SEGMENT 1: Cloqwork (Ozpin x Qrow)**

**(LOOSELY) BASED ON: Point Break (1991)**

**NOTE: So this is a special segment since I'm not the one who wrote this! The reason why is because I wanted to include a Cloqwork segment for the special, but I wasn't confident in my ability to do the ship justice. All credit goes to "danielaserra632", who was an amazing person to work with. Here's a link to their profile:**

[danielaserra632 | Life Coaching, Proofreading & Editing | Fiverr](https://www.fiverr.com/danielaserra632)

* * *

_Since the very beginning of this ordeal, it had never been my intention to let him go like that… At least, it was never within my better judgement to see to it that way._

Qrow Branwen was a criminal that was highly wanted for acts of espionage and treason against the authorities of the land, and Ozpin was just the officer that had been assigned to the case to apprehend and bring this man in.

The events that led to this very moment with the two men stumbling through the woods, wanted and hunted for, is a story that is long, winded, and strange to say the very least. What had begun as a simple job (that at first, was easy enough to accomplish in Ozpin arresting Qrow) turned into Ozpin tracking down a man that had broken out of jail not long after he was brought in.

It was impressive that Qrow had managed to get out on his own in the way that he had, but he was easy to track yet slippery to keep track of. So, it was with some consideration that when times got desperate, then you might as well nip it in the bud before it got any worse.

Ozpin cuffed himself to Qrow and made it very clear to him that, “Wherever I go, you go too.” He said this without much thought that Qrow would have stubbornly replied with, “Then same goes to you, Oz.”

It was a bit baffling to try and figure out what Qrow had meant by that, but his confidence over the matter was no joke on his part. When Ozpin intended to drag Qrow back to jail, Qrow made an even bigger pull in his own direction to accomplish the last thing that he ever wanted to do in his life.

“Why won’t you just give in and allow me to bring you back to jail?” Ozpin eventually asked Qrow after his harsh tugs into the direction of what he wanted. Of course, Oz had just been following the orders of his higher-ups. As an officer, he was given the task to arrest Qrow and keep him in his cell for this one night, and the next morning a party of officers and secret forces would be there to take him away from there.

Such treatment could only mean that due to the severity of Qrow’s crimes, he was meant to be taken to a heavy duty criminal facility that would have him under intense lock down. Ozpin knew this for a fact, and this was even more reason that Qrow looked to him with an expression that was meant to say “seriously-you-really-gotta-ask-that?”

“Are you serious?” Qrow put the words out there and shook his head. “I can’t give myself in. There’s still one more thing that I need to do, and frankly, I don’t think I’ll go to prison if I get to do it.” Qrow explained this vaguely and Ozpin raised a brow at this ever so slightly. He wanted Qrow to carry on with his explanation.

“And what might that be?” Ozpin asked him. There was a very subtle hint of skepticism in his voice, but he was mostly just curious to know what this very important and crucial final wish was. If it was something legal, then Ozpin would just treat it like a death row inmate’s final meal.

Qrow ran his free hand through his hair and looked up to meet Ozpin’s eyes before a cheeky little smirk spread across his lips. “I want to ride a superwave.”

There was another beat of silence between them before Ozpin nodded to him with an air of disbelief. “I’m sorry?”

“You heard me. You’re close enough. I said I want to ride a superwave. Out in the sea.” Qrow reiterated what he said and managed to look off in the direction of where the nearest coastline would be. But Ozpin didn’t laugh and he didn’t make a mockery of this criminal’s dream. He just listened and nodded. “And that will make you satisfied enough to go to prison?” Ozpin asked him simply enough.

Qrow shrugged. “Yeah, sure. If I do it and I don’t die or something.”

“Okay. We’ll do that then.”

At the time, Oz had agreed to take Qrow all the way out towards the shoreline so he would be able to do that, but along the way, things got messier and messier, and there was so much to be misconstrued of the officer assisting the criminal in what the nation perceived to be their run from the law.

They hadn’t meant for things to appear this way, and this was the last thing either of them had wanted, but there was no stopping these things now.

So instead of Ozpin explaining himself at the risk of Qrow’s final arrest, they did run together. They ran, leapt over hurdles, and soon enough, they began to see that there was more to the other.

This dream of Qrow’s was so outlandish and yet he was so determined to see it through to the very end. Ozpin couldn’t help but admire that in him, that despite what life has thrown at Qrow, his spark of life never died out, even now. And that was why…

“We got him in sight! Shoot!” An officer ordered when the duo was seemingly cornered at one point.

They were really going to shoot Qrow down just as he found a way for them out of the field that they had stumbled into for potential shelter and to shake off the law. But before Qrow could take the shot, Ozpin stepped into the way of the bullet and took the hit right in his shoulder.

Qrow’s eyes widened and he hoisted Ozpin up to his feet as best as he could. “Oz! Shit! Don’t close your eyes and just stay with me! Damn it…!” Qrow held him and glanced around frantically. He ran them into the cornfield and ran along for either the barn or the woods. He already knew the cops were going to scout the barn, so he went into the woods and never looked back. He just kept half running and half dragging Ozpin along behind him.

They were so close to the shoreline now, but with Oz like this, Qrow stopped running once he believed that they were okay and he had the chance to fix up that wound of his. “Why did you do that? You could’ve died and how do you think that would leave me?” Qrow went off on Oz for his recklessness, and though Oz figured that he was being lectured because Qrow didn’t want to drag a dead body around behind himself, he was soon corrected. “If you died because of me, I could do you think I could handle that guilt? I’m a criminal, but I’m not heartless, damn it! I need you to stay with me to see me ride that wave… just so it won’t just be real for me.”

Oz watched Qrow and allowed him to move his shirt away from the shot wound. He didn’t say anything for some time while Qrow tended to the wound. “I’m sorry for my recklessness… I really wasn’t thinking before I acted.”

“Yeah, I can tell!” Qrow thoughtlessly snapped back, “Hold still… it’s going to hurt.”

It did hurt, but Ozpin just kept his teeth clenched and withstood the process as best as he could. “I don’t… nngh! Know what came over me, but…” Ozpin lifted a hand and rested it over Qrow’s.

The two men had their gazes meet and they held the stare for a good amount of time before Ozpin confessed, “I want to see you go and live that dream of yours now. If we don’t, then this was all wasted, right?”

“Don’t…” The words were naturally beginning to fall from Qrow’s lips now and his gaze softened on Ozpin, “Don’t say that, Oz… It won’t be a waste…”

It was going to happen, Ozpin knew, and though this trial was harsh on them, another part of him wished for more time with Qrow. He wasn’t sure why, but he didn’t want time to go any faster than it was going already.

He leaned and winced. “What are you trying to do? I still gotta get the bullet out of you,” Qrow told him and leaned a bit forward for him. “Just… come closer…” Ozpin told him, and without a second though, Qrow did just as he said and leaned in closer to Oz.

With him close enough, the grey haired man cupped his cheek in one hand and brought him in closer and closer until their lips met. The kiss was gentle and sweet, chaste even. Qrow was surprised, but soon enough he relaxed and returned the kiss with closed eyes.

It was Qrow that broke the kiss though, and instead rested his forehead against Oz’s forehead. “Don’t do this to me…” Qrow whispered out in a soft beg.

But it was already too late.

They were already falling in love.

The handcuffs jingled with their sense of nonchalant indifference as the movements of two desperate bodies rang that clinking carelessly in the air. The scent of salt water and an ocean breeze was strong in this area, and the roar of crashing waves was all that resonated throughout the world around them.

There wasn’t going to be much time left for them until the rest of Ozpin’s peers arrived on the scene to take Qrow away to a prison cell for God knew how long. As far as it was known, Qrow was bound to remain behind bars for the rest of his life, and that thought seemed to be a fate worse than death itself to Qrow.

Both men ran hard and fast, but perhaps it was a subconscious pull, but Qrow found himself gearing towards the sound of ocean waves and the crashes of them against this cursed earth. The only good it gave to be on land was the fact that he could bear down on it and race towards the place he truly wanted to be right now.

Ozpin followed suit without much thought and allowed this man, that at this point he deemed as both dear friend and lover, to take him wherever it was he needed to be.

Again, they really did not have much time left.

Once they burst out of the foliage, Qrow slowed down his running and looked out over the white sand beach and the savage waves that rose into the sky – mighty and strong – before they came crashing back down in a feat of magnificence. Qrow felt it crying out from within himself that he needed to be out there on those waves, and give way to potentially tame them one last time, and it that moment, it would be his last. Even if it meant that… That was a life purpose for him that the threat of prison cells repelled him towards.

With eyes fixed and staring, Ozpin reached out and grabbed onto Qrow’s hand. “We can’t stop here… If we do then you will definitely be arrested and hauled off. We need to keep moving.” Ozpin told Qrow with firm certainty that that would happen if they stopped here for a moment longer.

“And when do we stop running?” Qrow asked solemnly while he never once broke his gaze away from the ocean.

Ozpin wasn’t sure what to say or how to say it to Qrow when he asked that, so the dark haired man said it again. Qrow turned to look at Ozpin now with a fierce gleam in his eyes as he asked him with a voice that was rattled in heated desperation, “When do we stop running, Oz?”

Ozpin had little to respond with, so Qrow carried on, “Do we stop running when we die or isn’t it just inevitable that I’m going to get locked up and your life is gonna turn into a living hell from there? You bet too much on me, Oz, and now look what it’s done.”

There was a moment of silence between them and Qrow panted softly in order to catch his breath.

The present moment was telling Ozpin to keep running with Qrow in hopes that everything would just get better from there, but the more he thought about the future in this endeavor, the more uncertain and blurry it seemed. It almost seemed as though if they kept going like this, then there would be no future for them at all.

Ozpin opened his mouth to say something on the matter, but just before he could speak, car after car and then a truck of other law enforcements arrived on the scene of the beach. They stopped their vehicles with abrupt and violent whiplash and the law enforcers fled the cars with guns at the ready.

They were caught, and all Qrow could do was look back out at the ocean waves. His eyes were so longing to be out there rather than on land, but he was still bound to Ozpin.

Oz had a feeling that he knew exactly what he had to do next, but a part of himself questioned for a moment if it was the right thing to do. He bit his bottom lip. “...I know what you want me to do,” Oz looked up at Qrow, “But are you sure?”

It was a stupid question, Ozpin knew, but it was one that depending on the answer, it would give his body the resolve to actually do it.

Qrow ignored the cops as best as he could and looked back at Ozpin with a desperate nod. “Yes, I need to do this, Oz.”

There was no denying it any longer. Qrow had to go, and Ozpin had been a fool that fell deeply in love with the criminal he had pursued all this time.

Ozpin gritted his teeth and pulled up the key that would set Qrow free.

He was always meant to be a free bird, and if this is what guarenteed that, then there was not another moment to lose. Ozpin used the key to just unlock Qrow’s handcuff and released him from the restraints of it. “Go…” Ozpin told him with an oddly calm voice despite the officers that were trying to rush them. “Don’t forget this,” Oz handed Qrow a surfboard that they had stumbled upon along the way of their travels, “And don’t forget this.”

After Qrow took the board, Oz leaned up and cupped Qrow’s face into his hands. Ozpin pressed his lips gently to Qrow’s and closed his eyes into the kiss.

Everything had been as expected as it all could have been, but this kiss had not been expected from the former officer. Qrow’s eyes widened, but he didn’t want to ruin this final kiss of theirs. He returned the gesture of love in full and wrapped an arm around Ozpin’s waist in order to pull him in closer. Their embrace was tight and intimate, passionate and short-lived, before Qrow broke away from it and sighed out with a loving and caring accent.

This proximity of theirs was the toughest connection that had been created by them in that moment. They had seconds to lavish in it and each one was the most meaningful and electric second that passed through them. Qrow knew this was the end of it the moment boots slammed onto white sand, and his arm slipped away from Ozpin’s waist with reluctance. But once the motion was set, everything else flowed naturally right after, and what seemed to be slowed to a crawl was sped back up in a fast forward of actions.

“Don’t let him get away!” The arriving officers yelled out, but Oz did nothing to watch his lover take flight into the ocean with board in hand.

Qrow placed the surfboard down and began paddling himself out and deeper into the waves. He grew further and further away by the second and Oz watched him go.

The other officers ran up to the shore and some stopped short closer to where Oz stood with the handcuffs hanging off his lone wrist. “Why didn’t you stop him?!” One of the officers yelled at Ozpin.

The waves crashed louder it seemed, but Oz heard the words that were addressed to him. He remained composed and calm though, and without a need to give an answer to the question. “Get him out of the water, damn it!” Another officer cried out, but no one was able to reach Qrow at this point. He was too far out and already drawing near to the biggest waves out there. He never looked back.

While the officers were all dumbfounded and distracted with trying to figure out how they would get Qrow out of the waves, Ozpin pulled back and away from the scene. “…he’s not coming back.” He simply uttered under his breath as he began to move away.

There was no more reason to run from them, Ozpin figured, and so he walked away leisure and without urgency as he listened to the waves crash onto the shore. The officers scrambled to figure this situation out, but Oz already knew the end.

Out in the sea, Qrow found his destined wave. It was the wave that would make him feel the most alive all at once, climbing higher and higher as he took to it, and rose to his feet to live in its glory, before it would came down and bring him under with it. The crashes all sounded the same, and yet Ozpin felt he heard it when the wave rose and the crash that took Qrow with it was there. No one else could hear it, but Oz did, and he knew before eyes could tell that Qrow was gone now.

The grey haired man stopped and looked back out at the sea.

He stood alone now and watched it all replay again in his brain from all those years ago. A small smile graced his lips as he lovingly whispered out to the salty sea breeze, “Keep flying, you dusty old crow.”

* * *

**SEGMENT 2: Renora (Ren x Nora), Qrowin (Qrow x Winter)**

**BASED ON: Parks and Recreation (season 5, episode 1, "Ms. Knope Goes to Washington")**

**NOTE: Consider this canon with the RWBY-Parks and Rec universe, aka the "Regret and Shame" chapter**

While waiting for Lie Ren and Winter Schnee to show up, Nora Valkyrie and Qrow Branwen decided to explore the City of Vale Museum of Valean History. It was a popular site for most tourists visiting the city. But Nora and Qrow had two different reasons to be excited.

For Nora, this was a dream come true since she had always wanted to visit the kingdom's capital. She loved the history of the kingdom since she was a bit of a history buff. 

For Qrow...he wanted to go on a treasure hunt since he had just seen "National Treasure" and was fully convinced that a vault of gold and jewels was hidden somewhere inside the museum. 

"So I want to see the history of the girl scouts," Nora said excitedly as she flipped through the pages on her museum guide handbook, "and then Ozma's pocket watch and the exhibit of the very first Vytal Festival and everything-I want to see everything!" Nora's excitement immediately dissipated when she looked up from her handbook and saw Qrow trying to climb the replica Airbus exhibit that they were visiting. This was an exhibit dedicated to the very first Airbus ever made, a fact which made Nora cringe since Qrow was treating it like a regular jungle gym. 

"Qrow, get down from there!" Nora shouted, trying not to panic. 

"Hey, Nora, is this the Airbus from 'Back to the Future III'?" Qrow said, completely unaware of where he was and what he was doing. 

"Hey, get down from there! Qrow, stop!" 

"I think it is! Nora, come on, check this out!" 

Before Nora could berate him any further, a museum guard appeared. He was frowning, unhappy at the sight of the manchild messing around on the exhibit of the first ever Airbus. "Hey, buddy," he said, sounding completely tired, "Come on down from there for me, please."

Due to a security guard telling him off, Qrow finally got off the Airbus. In typical Qrow fashion, he leaped off and attempted to do a roll when he hit the ground. Instead, he just plopped onto the ground. Qrow stood up and then walked away, trying his best to brush off his embarrassing fall. The guard, although he was still annoyed, walked away having done his job. 

Nora sighed in relief. "Sir, you protect our nation's history, and you're a hero," she said to the guard. The guard didn't seem to hear her as he continued to walk away. 

Qrow scoffed. "Yeah...a hero with something to hide, like probably a treasure map," he said, earning him an eye roll from Nora. 

Suddenly, Nora felt someone poke her shoulder. Turning around, she nearly yelped in joy when she saw that it was Lie Ren and Winter Schnee. Winter moved away from her to tackle her boyfriend Qrow while Nora hugged Ren so hard that he felt like his ribs were about to pop. It had been months since they last saw each other, ever since Ren got a job offer in the capital. 

Nora broke off the hug, then gave Ren a kiss. Ren smiled, clearly having missed Nora's kisses. "Oh, hey!" Nora said happily, "It's so good to see you!"

"It's so great to see you too!" Ren said.

"Yeah!" 

Just then, Ren noticed something behind Nora and started to frown. "Yikes," he said, looking as if he was about to hurl. 

Curious, Nora turned around. She immediately regretted her decision when she saw that it was Qrow and Winter on the ground, making out as if they were in their bedroom. Winter was straddling Qrow while Qrow clearly had his hands on her butt. What made the situation worse was that Nora and Ren clearly saw other museum patrons staring, wondering why Qrow and Winter were furiously making out on the ground.

"Okay, uh, guys," Nora said, trying to get them to stop, "Let's motor! Guys? Guys!" At that, Qrow and Winter stopped. They stood up, wondering why Nora was calling out to them.

"Let's go get some astronaut ice cream or something!" Nora said, trying to make the situation less awkward. 

Qrow just stared back at Nora. It looked like he wanted to say something, but wasn't sure how to say it. "We were thinking about maybe just," Qrow stammered, "uh, we...er, maybe we were gonna go back to-"

"-we're gonna have sex," Winter said, bluntly. She then tugged Qrow away from the group. Not that Qrow needed the extra push; he was already in front of Winter, nearly running his way back to the hotel. 

As they left the museum, Nora and Ren just watched, completely dumbfounded by Qrow and Winter's behavior. 

* * *

**SEGMENT 3: Arctic Monkey/SunFlakes/WhiteSun (Sun x Weiss)**

**BASED ON: Uncharted 4 - A Thief's End**

It was another typical day in suburban paradise for the Wukongs. Sun, who had just gotten off of his day job as a salvager, was in the kitchen preparing dinner for himself and his wife, Weiss. Weiss was still at work, typing away her next article for the news company she worked for. Typical, normal jobs for a typical, normal married couple. 

Except, life wasn't always normal for the both of them. Before they embraced this new, non-exciting lifestyle, they used to go on adventures. They traveled all over Remnant, finding lost cities and treasures that most people believed only existed in fairy tales and legends. From the Golden City of Mountain Glenn to the Atlantis of the Tundra hidden deep inside Atlas, Sun and Weiss made their living as adventurers. 

But that was the past. It was time to move on, especially now that they were considering starting a family. Weiss seemed to be okay with moving on. However, Sun Wukong was having difficulty with that part. He liked the thrill of the hunt; he was great at it and it made him feel alive. Working a regular job that didn't involve deadly traps or mercenaries trying to kill you just felt...off. Still, Weiss seemed happy about her new life, so Sun tried his best to not complain. That was exactly the mindset he had as he walked over to Weiss, food at hand. He tried to stay focused on his wife, rather than what Sage Ayana had told him earlier that day.

_"Got some news from my contact about that wreck off the coast of Menagerie," Sage said with a huge grin on his face._

_Immediately, Sun knew where this conversation was headed. "Oh, no," he said._

_"Ah… the ship’s intact."_

_"Yeah?"_

_"Cargo’s ripe for the packing!"_

_"You are a persistent one, I’ll give you that."_

_"And…all the money came through for the equipment, too. We're all set. Except, uh…my best guy-the guy I trust for the job-the only one. He…he’s got cold feet!"_

_"My feet were never warm to begin with. Tell me, this 'contact' of yours…he get the permits?"_

_"No, he did not get the permits. Can’t no one get the damn permits-"  
_

_"-course not."_

_"But Sun, don’t you see that works in our favor? No permits means no competition. The shit is ours."_

_"No permits means no go!"_

_"Sun…this is retirement money. For the both of us. Okay, I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to be working salvage when I’m sixty. Do you?"_

_"Sure beats prison. Listen, I have to pass. And trust me so should you."_

"And…done! Okay!"

Weiss Schnee closed her laptop as soon as she finished typing out the last sentence. As she did, Sun Wukong took a seat next to her on the couch. He handed her a bowl of food, which she took happily. By the way she was looking at the food, Sun assumed that Weiss hadn't eaten the whole day. 

"Finished it?' Sun asked. 

Weiss shrugged, not really caring about her article at the moment. "Yeah," she said, nonchalantly, "You know, it’s probably too long, and full of typos, but that’s what editors are for, right?"

 _Well...touche Weiss, touche._ "Heh, true."

"Oh God, I’m starving," Weiss muttered as she dug into the bowl. Sun resisted the urge to call her out on this since she prided herself on table manners. He wanted to make the joke, but he also cared about living. 

"Looks good," Sun said, gesturing to the bowl. 

"Mmhmm…so…wa wzz yr dy?"

Sun blinked twice and began to wonder if Weiss had either learned a new language or was speaking in enchantment table-speak. "What was that?" he asked.

Weiss looked up from her bowl, confused. "What do you mean?" she asked Sun.

"I got none of that."

At that, Weiss let out a chuckle. "Oh, sorry! I’m sorry! I asked, how was your day?"

Sun nodded his head, now hearing what Weiss had meant to say from earlier. "Oh," he said, making sure to avoid mentioning his conversation with Sage Ayana, "It was fine."

"Mmhmm," Weiss muttered absentmindedly. 

"Just another typical day in paradise."

"Hm...that's good, Sun."

"I, uh…well, I got to pull a bunch of garbage out of a river."

"Hmm…at least you got to go for a swim. Did you find any exciting garbage?"

"Oh, some…brilliant stuff. Brilliant stuff. It was an, um…early twenty-first century truck…we got. Apparently the natives called it a 'semi'."

Sun smirked at Weiss, hoping she would laugh at his joke. Weiss, seeing where Sun was going with this, just rolled her eyes before letting out a tiny chuckle. "Oh dear lord," she said as she took another bite of her food. She was used to Sun's quips at this point, even though they still annoyed her from time to time. 

"So…just boring stuff," Sun continued, "Tell me about the article."

"Well…it started out as this fluff piece about tourism in Kuo Kuana," Weiss started, "but… I don’t think the magazine is gonna like the angle that I’m taking because…everyone immediately commented about how rude the smog was…"

Even though he didn't mean to, Sun started mentally drifting away when he noticed the painting of the Menagerian jungle that he and Weiss bought several months ago. It was a simple work of art, just depicting the jungle setting that Menagerie was known for. However, the more he stared at the painting, the more he thought back to his past adventures. Running through the jungle, avoiding wild animals, fighting mercenaries in camo gear...that's what he associated with the jungle nowadays. So as he stared at the painting, he couldn't help but imagine himself in that same setting, probably on the run from some evil tribe or militia that he stole from-

"Ow!" Sun yelped when he suddenly felt something sharp poke him on the shoulder, "What was that!?" Turning to Weiss, he saw that it was her poking him with her fork. She stared back at Sun, looking just a bit annoyed at how he spaced out for a second. 

"Where are you?" Weiss asked. 

"I’m...here," Sun said, not wanting to tell her he actually did space out, "Being stabbed with a fork!"

"Oh, really?"

"What? Just keep going! It was – it was interesting."

Weiss raised an eyebrow at that, unconvinced. "Oh?"

"Yeah!"

"Interesting. So Sun, what’s my article about?" 

_Well...shit, should've seen that one coming._ "What? You mean this one?"

Weiss smirked as she took a bite of her food, already expecting Sun to fail this challenge. "Mm-hmm. I'd love to hear your very detailed thoughts on my article."

** Sun's onscreen options **

**Option 1: Flights in Kuo Kuana….**  
**Option 2: People… of Kuo Kuana …? (Sun ends up picking this one)**  
**Option 3: The lost city of Kuo Kuana…?**

"Uh…the people of…of…uh, Kuo Kuana. And-and the smog. And how they – they can’t get a flight anywhere. And…people can’t breathe?"

Sun sheepishly smiled at Weiss, hoping that he somehow lucked into the right answer. The dull look that Weiss was giving him told him that he did not. 

"Wow," Weiss said, unimpressed but amused at Sun's attempt. 

"All right, I’m sorry-"

"-no, no, it was valiant. That was really-"

"-well, come on Weiss, I was in the ballpark, right?"

"In a different state. But, yeah, you were in a ballpark."

Sun chuckled. That was when Weiss' face dropped, as if she just realized something. "Sage Ayana asked you about that Menagerie job again," Weiss said, reading Sun like an open book. 

At that, Sun had to sigh. He knew that Weiss was perceptive. It was just a matter of time before she figured out what he was feeling, especially considering that she knew the kind of "requests" that Sage would send to Sun. "Sage always asks me about the Menagerie job," Sun said, trying not to sound disappointed about the whole situation. 

"Look, Sun…I really think that you should take it."

 _No you don't...you just don't want to see me unhappy anymore._ Sun knew that Weiss was just looking out for him. She knew how much he missed being out in the world, exploring uncharted territory, and getting into all sorts of danger. However, knowing that Weiss wanted to settle down into a normal, suburban life, Sun couldn't bring himself to go back into the game. He was going to make the suburban life work...even if it bored him to death.

"You know what, I don’t want it," Sun said, "Really. I mean, he doesn’t have the permits. And we agreed, we’re not gonna take that kind of work anymore. It’s just not worth it." 

Weiss didn't look convinced. "Okay, but," she said, "it…it doesn’t sound that risky. All right? If it’s just the permits-"

"-no way."

"You could call Ghira Belladonna!" 

Sun sighed again. Ghira, his mentor and his former partner in crime. He was one of the oldest treasure hunters who was still working in the field. Ghira was also the closest person he had to a father figure. Still...it didn't feel right reconnecting with him. He was part of the "old life". Sun feared that if he were to join up with Ghira again, he'd eventually find himself back in the game. As much as he wanted to, he loved being with Weiss more. 

"You haven’t seen him in what, two years?" Weiss continued. 

Sun shook his head, wanting to move from this topic. "Weiss, look, could we please drop this?" he said, trying not to raise his voice at her. 

"Hey, I just don’t want you to not take it because of me-"

"-and I’m not taking it because of me, okay?" At that, Sun put his bowl down on the table and sat back on the couch. He looked away from Weiss, feeling guilty about this whole situation. He felt like he was disappointing her by not taking up Sage's job offer.

Weiss sighed and leaned her head on her hand. She didn't know what to say to fix this situation either. It hurt to see Sun so...defeated. 

"Look, I appreciate the gesture," Sun said, trying to salvage the conversation, "It’s just…it's just..." Sun trailed off, unsure how to follow-up what he just said. 

Sensing that the conversation was going nowhere, Weiss stood up and picked up Sun's bowl. "I’m gonna go ahead and do the dishes," she said. 

With the feeling of guilt creeping back on him, Sun grabbed Weiss' elbow and gently pulled her back. "No, no, stop, I’ll do them," Sun said, "No, hold on-"

"-Sun, you did them last night!" Weiss said, trying to gently take Sun's hand off of her. 

"No, you cooked. I clean. It’s fine." Weiss stopped moving and stared at Sun, not sure where he was going with this. Even Sun started to wonder where this conversation was going. "I mean…at least...at least, uh, let me...let me try to earn it or something. Let me, uh…play you for it."

Weiss' eyebrows shot up. She wasn't expecting Sun to say that. "You’ll 'play me' for it?” Weiss asked, still not sure where he was going with this. 

Looking around the room, Sun's eyes stopped at the Action-Center 1 console by the TV. He smirked when an idea formed in his head. It was a childish move but part of him thought it'd be fun and that Weiss would be amused by it. "Yeah," Sun said, "Yeah, yeah, your little TV game thing. I bet I can beat your high score."

"You think that you can beat my high score on my 'TV game thing'?"

"Yeah, I think you're scared now-"

"-Sun, you don’t even know what it’s called!" Weiss playfully sneered. 

"I don’t need to know what it’s called!" Sun retorted, "I’ve seen you play! It’s jumping and running and I have a natural talent for that!"

"Oh, really? Right."

"So what do you say...ice queen? Is it a bet?" Just to egg her on, Sun began humming the song 'Let It Go' from the 'Frozen' movie. He knew it got under her skin, especially with how many people nicknamed her 'ice queen'. 

Predictably, that was enough to get Weiss going. "Oh wow," she said as she put the empty bowls down, "Okay, monkey-man." Weiss then walked over to the TV to start up the game. She then grabbed the controller and tossed it over to Sun, who caught it. 

**Five minutes later...**

**LEVEL SCORE: 0528**

**BEST SCORE: 3500**

Sun's jaw dropped as he stared at the screen in disbelief. Weiss, although she didn't want to gloat, couldn't help but smirk at Sun's defeat. She didn't want to be a sore winner but he was the one who pushed for this. 

"You gotta be kidding me," Sun said as he dropped the controller to the floor, "I practically had it!" He leaned back on the sofa, wondering if the game was rigged or broken. 

Feeling slightly sorry for her husband, she leaned back as well and put her arm around his back. "You can give it another shot," Weiss said, a bit condescendingly, "C’mon, double or nothing. My car could really use a good cleaning."

 _And there she goes, the ice queen is coming out._ "Really? Really, you’re gonna start the smack talk now?"

"Yeah. Come on Sun, there’s this mode called “easy” mode. I just switch it-"

"-wow, Weiss, wow-"

"-it’s way easier on 'easy' mode-"

"-you know-you know, just keep talking…keep talking, Weiss-"

"-awwww, what are you gonna do?"

"I’m-I’m warning you-"

"-what are you gonna do?"

"I’m warning you."

"Really now? In real life, what can you do? Show me!"

"Okay, okay. I’m telling you-"

"-what can you do in real life? Show me-"

At that, Sun turned to Weiss. With a big grin on his face, he reached for her and started tickling her sides. Weiss immediately burst out into laughter as she fell back on the couch. Staying on the attack, Sun moved in to tickle her further, resulting in him being right on top of Weiss. 

"This is what I’m telling you!" Sun said, playfully, "What do you think about that, huh!"

Weiss kept on laughing as Sun continued to tickle. After a few seconds, he stopped to let her breathe. It was at that moment that both Sun and Weiss became aware of their position; Weiss was on her back on the couch while Sun was practically straddling her, his arms by her sides. Taking advantage of this, Weiss reached up to touch Sun's face. Ironically, her palm was warm, which made Sun feel relaxed and comforted. 

"Hey...are you happy?" Weiss asked, sincerely. 

Although Sun had a lot on his mind, especially with the Sage Ayana job, he only had one answer for this question. "Yeah, of course," he said, "You?"

"Let's see...ummm-"

“-'um?' Really?"

Weiss chuckled at him to let him know that she was just teasing. Now that they had been in this position for more than a minute now, both Sun and Weiss were starting to feel a little hot and bothered. "Come here," Weiss whispered. She then pulled Sun in for a kiss, which he gladly accepted. 

_I'll deal with Sage's job offer later...first...got to make the wife happy tonight._

* * *

**SEGMENT 4: Emercury (Emerald x Mercury)**

**BASED ON: Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)**

As Emerald Sustrai waited for her contact to continue the negotiations over the Power Relic, she couldn't help but stare out the balcony. The cosmos was beautiful, even though she knew that beyond the nebulas was the cold vacuum of space. Still, it was an amazing sight. If anything, it was better than staring at a cell wall. The escape from the Nova Corps prison was only a few days ago, which amazed her since she didn't think she could make her contact's deadline in delivering the Power Relic.

Even though her new "friends" were fools, she did owe them for getting her out of the prison. There was Roman "The Raccoon" Torchwick, who was gambling right now with his best friend Neopolitan, the sentient ice cream-and-cone combination (still the strangest alien race that Emerald has come across). And then there was the loud, boisterous Yatsuhashi the Destroyer, the man who took everything literally. He, too, was playing with Roman and Neo. Then there was...him. Emerald wasn't sure what to make of Mercury "Star Assassin" Black yet. He was a doofus who didn't know when to shut up but he was good at what he did for a living, which was apparently scavenging and playing the criminal. He annoyed her but she couldn't deny that he was crucial in helping her finish her mission. 

_Helps that he's easy on the eyes-WHOA, WHERE DID THAT COME FROM?! Come on Emerald, don't let your mind wander like that-_

"Man, you wouldn't believe what they charge for fuel out here! I might actually lose money on this job."

Emerald had to resist groaning when she saw that it was Mercury coming to join her at the balcony. She looked away but noticed, from the corner of her eyes, that Mercury was smiling at her. 

"My connection is making us wait," Emerald said. 

That didn't seem to phase Mercury. He shrugged it off, then took a step closer to Emerald. "It's just a negotiation tactic. Trust me, this is my specialty. Where yours is more, 'Stab, stab. Those are my terms.'" Despite that being a jab at her, Emerald took it in stride since she knew Mercury was just messing around. Feeling more comfortable being around him, she gave him a soft smile. 

_"Attachments are weakness! Don't forget that, Emerald!"_

_"Yes, mother."_

_"You will understand soon enough that in order to bring balance to this universe...we must act without emotion. Without attachments. Remember...the hardest choices require the strongest wills. You may one day find yourself in a situation where the choices available to you will tear your soul. If you ever find yourself in a situation like that...I hope that you will have the strength to do what is needed. Without emotion...without attachments...without regret."_

_"I will be ready, mother."_

"My mother didn't stress diplomacy," Emerald said, thinking back to all of Salem's harsh teachings. 

"Mother? You mean...Salem?"

"Yes and no. Salem's not my real mother. When Salem took my home world, she killed my real parents in front of me. She tortured me, turned me into a weapon. When she said she was going to destroy an entire planet for Tyrian Callows, I...I couldn't stand by and..." Emerald trailed off when she saw the walkman radio on Mercury's belt. Thinking back to their escape from the Nova Corps, Emerald recalled that Mercury had gone back into the prison in order to retrieve a special item of his. The fact that he came back with an outdated, junky radio confused Roman, Neo, Emerald, and Yatsuhashi since it seemed so trivial. Why was a device like this worth getting killed for? 

"Why would you risk your life for this?" Emerald said as she took the walkman from Mercury to examine. Hovering over the play button, Emerald pressed it. Music started coming out of Mercury's headphones, which were around his neck. 

**♫ I must've been through about a million girls ♫**  
**♫ I'd love 'em and I'd leave 'em alone ♫**

  
"My mother gave it to me," Mercury said, "My mom liked to share with me all the pop songs that she loved growing up. I happened to have it on me when I was...the day that she...you know, when I left Remnant." At that, Mercury gently took his walkman back from Emerald. Emerald could've sworn that she saw him about to tear up. There was something he wasn't telling her about the walkman and its significance but she decided not to press him on the topic. She could relate to not wanting to talk about the past. 

"What do you do with it?" Emerald asked. 

"Do? Nothing. You listen to it. Or you can dance."

Emerald scoffed at that. _Dance? What does this human think of me as?!_ "I'm a warrior and an assassin!" Emerald said, "I do not dance."

Mercury smirked at that, somehow both annoying and confusing Emerald. She didn't know where he was going with this. "Really?" Mercury said, "Well, on my planet, there's a legend about people like you. It's called...'Footloose'. And in it, a great hero...named Kevin Bacon...teaches an entire city full of people with sticks up their butts that dancing, well...it's the greatest thing there is."

Emerald grimaced as Mercury told this fable from Remnant. All she could imagine were crowds of people in pain, begging for someone to release the devices that had been implanted inside of them. Begging for this mythical warrior named Kevin Bacon to arrive and rescue them all. And apparently, dancing is what saves them. _Perhaps dancing has a different connotation in Remnant culture?_

"Who put the sticks up their butts?" Emerald asked sincerely.

Mercury's face dropped, as if he said something wrong. "What? No, that's just a-"

"-that is cruel!"

"No, no, no, it's just a phrase people use."

Mercury stopped talking, realizing he was digging himself into a hole with the 'Footloose' story. Instead, he decided to take a different approach. He reached for the headphones around his neck and gently placed them over Emerald's head. Emerald listened closely as the music took over. 

**♫ But when the grass got a little greener on the other side ♫**  
**♫ I'd just tear out that page ♫**  
**♫ But then I fooled around and fell in love ♫**  
**♫ I fooled around and fell in love- ♫**

"The melody is pleasant!" Emerald shouted over the music. Mercury grimaced at the sudden shouting but quickly recovered. 

As Emerald went back to the music, she noticed that Mercury had gotten just a few inches closer to her. She started to feel her heart race, but she wasn't entirely sure why. It was something about this moment that was affecting her. The nebulas made for a beautiful backdrop, the music was lovely, and here was this man with the decent-enough features, just wanting to see her dance. It was strange for Emerald. She was so used to dealing with other people through violence and aggression that someone genuinely caring for her seemed alien to her. 

**♫ I fooled around and fell in love ♫** (Mercury and Emerald are getting closer and closer to each other. They are both in each other's personal space, close enough to kiss)  
**♫ I fooled around and fell in love ♫** (Mercury takes Emerald's hand and they sway slowly to the music. It looks like Mercury is just about to lean in and kiss Emerald-)

"NO!" 

Mercury yelped when all of a sudden, Emerald took out a knife and held it by his throat. He leaned back against the guardrail, trying his best not to get his throat cut. 

"Ow, what the hell!" Mercury yelled, wondering why Emerald's move changed so quickly and abruptly. 

"I KNOW WHO YOU ARE, MERCURY BLACK! AND I AM NOT SOME STARRY-EYED WAIF HERE TO SUCCUMB TO YOUR...YOUR PELVIC SORCERY!" 

"That is not what is happening here!"

Before Emerald could go any further, she and Mercury both heard the crowd behind them suddenly start to yell. Something was going on, but neither could tell what was happening. Emerald pulled her knife away from Mercury and the two of them rushed back into the building to check on Roman, Neo, and Yatsuhashi.

* * *

**SEGMENT 5: Hummingbird (Qrow x Summer)**

**BASED ON: The Terminator (1984)**

It had only been a few hours since the escape from the police station. As Summer Rose lay in the motel bed, she couldn't help but think back to that moment. That awful moment that will forever haunt her dreams. 

The Gynoid...the machine sent back in time to terminate her before she could give birth to her future daughter, Ruby Rose. Why? Because one day, Ruby will lead all of humanity and faunus-kind against SALEM, a highly-advanced A.I. that was created to protect Remnant but ended up turning against its creators. The Gynoid, by impersonating a woman named "Penny Polendina", was able to infiltrate the city and take out every other woman named "Summer Rose". This wasn't an elaborate strategy according to Qrow Branwen; rather, it was Penny using process of elimination in order to accomplish its goal. Apparently, SALEM didn't know what Summer looked like, which was why Penny decided to go after all possible suspects. 

And that was only one part of Penny's rampage. Summer grimaced as she thought back to all the people who were killed by Penny, just to get to her. Ghira...Kali...and a majority of the officers at the police station. Cold, emotionless, methodical...Penny was a machine on a mission, not caring who it had to kill to succeed. 

Luckily for Summer, Ruby thought ahead and sent back one of her soldiers to protect her. Sergeant Qrow Branwen, serial number DN38416. At least, that was what Summer thought at first when Qrow told her he was ordered to protect her. He later revealed to her that he had volunteered for the mission. That baffled Summer since she couldn't believe anyone would want to go on a mission like this, especially considering that there was no way back to the future. Once you were sent back in time, that was it, you were stuck there for life. That bravery was inspiring to Summer and she felt touched that he had gone out of his way to keep her safe. True, it was more to keep Ruby Rose alive, but Summer appreciated his protection nonetheless. 

Summer sat up on the bed and turned to the window. Qrow was sitting on a chair, staring outside to make sure that Penny wasn't in the area. He looked tired, making Summer wonder when was the last time he had gotten any sleep. Feeling sorry for the soldier, Summer got up to and sat next to him to keep him company. Qrow didn't acknowledge her at first but once he saw that she was keeping him company, he gave her a nod. 

Although Summer wanted to talk about something fun in order to lighten the mood, she couldn't stop thinking about Penny and the police station rampage. She couldn't focus on anything else besides the chaos that Penny was responsible for. "She'll find us, won't she?" Summer whispered. 

Qrow didn't seem to react. Then, without turning to her, he said, "Probably."

"It'll never be over, will it?"

Qrow didn't respond to her. Summer wasn't sure if he was too focused on watching over the area or if he was uncomfortable speaking with her. Either option filled her with anxiety, but for different reasons. She didn't want to see Penny again but at the same time, she hated the thought of the future soldier being disappointed in her, especially with how important she was considered by Ruby's forces. The anxiety had gotten to the point that it was starting to affect her body. "Look at me, I'm shaking," Summer said sincerely, trying to calm herself down, "Some legend, huh? You must be pretty disappointed."

Qrow looked back to her. "No, I'm not," he said. Summer couldn't get a good read on his face. She wasn't sure what he was thinking, which was frustrating her. She wanted to get to know this man better, especially since he was risking so much just to keep her alive. 

Although Summer didn't want to pry, she felt that she had to in order to get Qrow to open up. Choosing her words carefully, Summer asked, "Qrow...the women in your time...what are they like?"

"Good fighters."

 _Come on Qrow, give me something more than that, please!_ "That's not what I meant. Was there someone special?"

"Someone?"

"A girl. You know."

Finally understanding what Summer was trying to get at, Qrow lowered his head. Summer frowned, unsure if she had walked into a bad topic for Qrow. Before she could ask what was wrong, Qrow said, "No. Never."

"Never?" Summer replied. She cursed herself, dismayed at how she had brought up an uncomfortable topic for Qrow. She just wanted to get to know the man better and yet here he was, even more closed off than before. Judging by how he reacted to her, Summer was sure she had just brought up something uncomfortable, unsettling. She began regretting her decision to even start talking with the man. "I'm sorry," Summer whispered, "I'm so sorry. So much pain."

"Pain can be controlled," Qrow said, not turning to look at her, "You just disconnect it." There was something...off about his tone. He sounded...hurt. Tired. Depressed. Either way, Summer couldn't help but feel sad for this man. From what she knew of Qrow's past, that he grew up in a concentration camp and that he had only known war his whole life, she couldn't even imagine just how broken he was on the inside. 

"So you feel nothing?" Summer asked. 

This time, Qrow turned to Summer. Summer looked back at him, wondering what he had on his mind. "Ruby Rose gave me a  
picture of you once," he said, catching Summer off-guard. She wasn't expecting to hear that. "I didn't know why at the  
time. It was very old...torn...faded. You were young like you are now. You seemed just...a little sad. I used to always wonder what you were thinking at that moment. I memorized every line...every curve. I came across time for you, Summer. I love you. I always have."

Silence. 

Qrow's words didn't immediately register in Summer's mind. Just hearing that this soldier, the man from the future, loved her made her mind go numb. As she started processing what Qrow said, suddenly, all of his actions began taking on a different context. From him volunteering to go on a suicide mission to keep her safe, to him not thinking that she was a disappointment despite not living up to the warrior woman image that the future people had of her. 

He loved her. 

He traveled back in time, not just to protect her...but to meet her. To meet the woman he had fallen for just through the stories he heard about her and an old picture of her given to him by Ruby. 

She was his world.

And...she loved him back for that. 

Before Summer could respond, Qrow stood up and walked over to the bed, where their homemade pipe bombs lay. He started packing the bombs up while trying to ignore Summer. Summer stood up and walked over to him, not wanting to move on from their conversation. 

"I shouldn't have said that," Qrow said, unable to look Summer in the eye.

So Summer did it for him. Gently, Summer reached over and had the soldier face her. She then reached forward and kissed him on the lips. At first, Qrow didn't seem to register what Summer was doing, making Summer stop. Anxiety filled Summer again when she saw Qrow just staring back at her. Then, all of a sudden, Qrow pulled her back in and kissed her back, reciprocating their first kiss. Summer kissed him back and intensified the action. She moaned as she felt his arms on her back, bringing her in closer. 

Qrow and Summer ended up making love with each other that night. Although Penny Polendina was on her way, for those few hours they were together, Qrow and Summer felt that the world was in the right place. No danger, no threats, no Penny...just the two of them, in love and in ecstasy. 

* * *

**SEGMENT 6: Blacksun (Sun x Blake)**

**BASED ON: Transformers (2007)**

_Okay Sun Wukong...just play it cool. Don't mind the fact that the number one hottie at the academy, Blake Belladonna, is sitting shotgun next to you right now. Just...be calm. Cool. Collected-_

"I can't believe that I'm here right now."

Sun was pulled out of his thoughts by Blake's outburst. Immediately, he tensed up, wondering if she was irritated with him or if she was just venting from earlier. It was just by pure luck that Sun caught up to Blake after she had dumped her douchebag boyfriend, Adam Taurus. His luck came through for him even further when Blake agreed to accept a ride from him. 

_If only my car wasn't this piece of shit, beat-up Bumblebee Camaro. No wonder the old owner, Yang Xiao Long, wanted to give it up. Blake wouldn't be impressed by something like this!_

"Uh...you can duck down if you want," Sun said, feeling that Blake was embarrassed just to be with him right now, "I mean, it won't hurt my feelings."

Surprising Sun, Blake turned around with a guilty expression on her face. "Oh, no, no, no!" she said, "I didn't mean here with you. I just meant here, like, in this situation. This same situation that I'm always in. Because...I don't know, I guess I just have a weakness for hot guys, for tight abs and really big arms."

Sun grimaced as he thought back to the events at the lake and realized just how closely Adam Taurus fit Blake's description of the guys she usually went for. _I bet it's all the kendo he does,_ Sun thought to himself, _he's always carrying that kendo stick wherever he goes._

Just then, Sun realized something. _Wait a minute...I'm pretty fit myself!_ "Big arms?" Sun said. Then, not so subtly, he raised his arm up, pretending to point out the features of the car, but really just showing off his arm muscles to Blake. "Well, there's a couple new additions in the car. Like, I just put in that light there. And that disco ball. And so the light reflects off the disco ball."

Blake, quickly realizing what Sun was trying to do, just raised an eyebrow and said, "Hmm." She was amused but not exactly impressed.  
  
"Yeah," Sun said, "It was a lot of work. You know, I had to do a lot of heavy lifting with my arms-"  
  
"-are you new to school this year?" Blake suddenly interrupted, "It's your first year here?"

Sun internally cringed. _No...we've known each other since we were kids. Come on, Blake, you've seen me around! Am I just that invisible?_

"Oh, no, no," Sun said, "We've technically known each other since primary combat school. Not exactly neighbors but we've lived in the same area since we were kids."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Yeah, a long time."  
  
"Well, do we have any classes together?"

"Yeah, yeah."

"Really? Which?"  
  
"Uh...History of the Faunus...Semblance II...Aura Defense...Chemistry-"

"Oh wait...Sun!" Blake beamed, suddenly remembering who Sun was. Although it took some time to get there, Sun was at least grateful that Blake did remember him.

"Sun...yeah, that's me-"

"It's Sun Wokleng? Did I get that right?"

 _Well...close enough. At least you know me, let's start with that._ "It's actually Wukong," Sun corrected.   
  
Blake sheepishly smiled at Sun, feeling a bit embarrassed by her lapse of memory. She did know who Sun was, she just never paid him much attention. And yet here he is, taking her home after a bad day. She felt like she was being a bad guest here, especially since Sun didn't have to drive her home. "God, you know what?" Blake continued, "I'm so sorry. I just-"

"-no, it's cool," Sun said, trying to wave her off.

"I just didn't recognize you! I mean, I have this other friend named Jaune and he's also blonde-"  
  
"-yeah, well, I mean, that's understandable. Jaune and I are similar looking, with the blonde hair and the muscles-"

**TCH-CH-CH-CH-CH-CH-CH-CH-CH-CH-CH-CH-CH!**

Sun Wukong started to panic when all of a sudden, the car started to slowly shut down. The key had somehow turned without him moving it and the brakes seemed to be working by themselves. Judging by where the car was going, it was going to stop at the edge of a hill, overlooking the whole area. With the sun setting in front of them, it was a gorgeous location, perfect for picnics...or a date. "No, no, no!" Sun said, trying to get the car to come back on, "No! Come on! Sorry, I'm just working out the kinks! You know, it's a new car!"

Sun paled when the car's radio suddenly turned on. Instead of his usual rock music, the dial somehow moved over to a R&B station. Sun felt like he was dying on the inside when he realized what song was playing. 

  
**♫ When I get that feeling ♫**  
**♫ I want sexual healing ♫**  
  


Blake's face dulled. The set-up for this whole scenario seemed...too perfect. She was sure that Sun wasn't the type of person who could set up such an elaborate attempt at getting with her. He seemed to be too much of a doofus to pull that off. Still, with the gorgeous location, the music selection, and how Sun was the one who came to her rescue when she broke up with Adam, she couldn't help but feel somewhat impressed. 

Sun, however, was in full-on panic mode. He had no idea how his car was doing this and the last thing he wanted to do was make Blake feel uncomfortable. "This radio is, like, you know...it's an old radio, too, so...look, this isn't something that I, you know...I can't get this radio to stop! Look, I wouldn't try this on you! Because this is like a romantic thing that I'm not trying to do. Not that you're not worthy of trying something like this on-"

"No, of course not," Blake said, not sure if she should feel offended or amused by Sun's rambling.

"I'm a friend of yours! I'm not a romantic friend! Romantic friends do this. I mean, I'm not that friend. I mean, we...I could be-"  
  
**♫ WHOA!** **I FEEL GOOD! ♫**

Sun stopped when he noticed that the song had changed again. Something was doing this, either to mess with him or to play wingman. Either way, he didn't appreciate whoever was tampering with his car. 

With the car stopped, Blake tied her hair up with a scrunchie and opened the door. "Just pop the hood," she said. She then walked over to the front of the car.   
  
As soon as Blake closed the door, Sun slammed his fist against the dashboard. "Stupid!" he whisper-shouted, "Shut up, shut up, shut up! Stop screwing this up for me!" He then quickly popped the hood and joined Blake at the front of the car.   
  
Blake pushed the hood up to inspect the engine. Her eyes widened; for an old car, its engine look brand-new. As if Sun had put all his money into the engine, rather than renovating the car itself. "Whoa, nice headers," Blake said, examining the engine, "You've got a high-rise, double-pump carburetor. That's...pretty impressive, Sun."  
  
"Double-pump?" Sun asked. Although this was his car, he wasn't exactly an expert.   
  
"It squirts the fuel in so you can go faster."

It was at that moment that Sun's attention turned to Blake's...figure. She was wearing an orange crop tank top, exposing her toned stomach. The tank top hugged her body, accentuating her curves. Then there was the fact that she was wearing Daisy Dukes, giving Sun a full-view of her beautiful legs. She looked like a faunus goddess and it blew Sun's mind that Adam would want to break up with someone like her. "I like to go faster," Sun said, trying his best not to let his thirst show.   
  
"And it looks like your distributor cap's a little loose," Blake continued, unaware that Sun was currently undressing her with his eyes. She leaned in and started fixing the distributor cap. By doing so, she bent over, thus showing off more of her supermodel-like body.   
  
_Okay Sun...eyes up. Focus on what Blake's doing, not what she looks like!_ "Yeah? How'd you know that?"  
  
"My dad. He was a real grease-cat. He taught me all about this. I could take it all apart, clean it, put it back together."  
  
"That's weird. I just wouldn't peg you for mechanical." Sun then rested his head on the hood, away from Blake's line of sight. "Oh, my God," he whispered to himself, hoping that she wouldn't hear him and that he wasn't popping a boner at the moment.   
  
"Well, you know, I don't really broadcast it," Blake continued, still unaware of what Sun was doing, "Guys don't like it when you know more about cars than they do. Especially not Adam. He hates it."  
  
"Yeah, no, I'm cool with, you know, females working on my engine. I prefer it, actually."

Blake raised an eyebrow at that. _If that was his way of flirting with me,_ Blake thought to herself, _then...well, it was okay. He could use some work though._ "Okay. You want to fire it up for me?" Blake said out loud.

"Oh, yeah, yeah, no problem."  
  
"Thanks."

At that, Sun rushed over back to the driver's seat to turn the car on. Wanting to keep their conversation going, he thought back to what she said about Adam and decided that was something he wanted to know more about. It seemed like she was open to talking about her ex. "You know, I was thinking," Sun said as he turned the key, "You know, if Adam's such a jerk, why do you hang out with him?"

Although he was just trying to make small talk with her, Sun began to panic when he saw the sudden change in Blake's mood. Her face fell and she suddenly looked uncomfortable, which was exactly what he was trying to avoid. "You know what?" Blake said, "I'm just...I'm gonna walk. Good luck with your car."  
  
_NO. NOT WHEN WERE JUST CONNECTING._ "All right!" Sun said, trying to play it off cool, "Walking's healthy, right?"

Blake nodded her head, then began walking down the dirt road away from him. Immediately, Sun sprung into action. He had made so much progress with Blake but now, it seemed like their relationship regressed. "Oh, God, no, no, no, no, no, no," Sun muttered to himself as he tried to get the car to start, "Come on, please! Please, you gotta work for me now! Don't let her walk away! Come on, come on, come on. Please, please-"  
  
**♫ Baby come back!** **Any kind of fool could see! ♫**

**♫ There was something...in everything about you ♫**  
  
**♫ Baby come back you can blame it all on me ♫**

**♫ I was wrong...and I just can't live without you ♫**  
  
Sun cheered as the Bumblebee Camaro came back to life, as if nothing had happened. This time, he was thankful for the magically changing radio station (although he did think it was strange that the car somehow knew exactly what he was feeling). "Hey! Hey, Blake! Wait a second!"

Sun turned the car around, kicking up some dust as he did. He then drove over to Blake, stopping right in front of her. Although he was worried at first that he was overstepping his boundaries here, he felt a wave of relief when he saw Blake smiling at him, amused that he came back for her. 

**A few hours later...**

  
  
Night came by the time Sun reached the Belladonna household. Upon reaching Blake's home, Sun parked the car, then turned it off. "There it is," he said to Blake. Blake nodded her head, thankful that Sun took time out of his day to drive her home.   
  
"I had fun," Blake said, sincerely, "So, you know, thanks for listening."

"Oh, yeah, yeah-"

"-Sun, do you...do you think I'm shallow?"

Sun tensed up. This was it; if he answered wrong here, he may as well have kissed his chances to be with Blake goodbye. He thought back to earlier, remembering just how Blake reacted when he asked her why she hung out with guys like Adam. He didn't mean to but now he realized that he had accidentally called her shallow based on the people she was affiliated with. "I think you're...no, no, no," Sun stammered, "Blake, I think...there's a lot more...than meets the eye...with you."

Sun cringed. _'_ _More than meets the eye with you'? What the hell did you just say, Sun? Oh god, Blake probably thinks you're an idiot for that!_

Turning over to her, Sun saw that Blake was just smiling at him. He was at least relieved that she wasn't giggling or mocking him for that line. "Okay," she said.  
  
"Yeah, yeah."  
  
"All right, I'll see you at school." Blake then opened the door and walked out. She closed the door behind her and walked over to her house. Sun watched her, still cringing at what he said just a few seconds ago.   
  
"All right...that's stupid," Sun muttered to himself, "That was a stupid line. 'There's more than meets the eye with you'? Stupid!"

But then he noticed something that made his heart flutter. Before Blake walked into her house, she turned back to him and waved. She then blew a kiss his way before walking in and closing the door behind her. 

_Woo! Never mind, that was an amazing line! Sun, you absolute genius!_ "Oh, God," Sun said to himself, overjoyed at how much progress he had made with his childhood crush, "Oh, my God. I love my car!"

* * *

**SEGMENT 7: Bumbleby (Yang x Blake)**

**BASED ON: Demon Slayer / Kimetsu No Yaiba (season 1, episode 26)**

**NOTE: This was originally going to be based on the movie Sixteen Candles. However, after re-watching the scene, I wasn't that interested in adapting it for the RWBY-verse. So, I switched over to Demon Slayer since I want to do a Demon Slayer chapter in the future. Yes, by how I casted the roles, Ruby Rose would be Nezuko.**

Before heading out of the Belladonna Camp, Yang Xiao Long wanted to pay a visit to Blake, the woman who had been her friendly rival during the recovery period. As part of recovering after the events on Mountain Glenn and the battle with the Grimm Spider Family, Yang and her fellow Grimm slayers, Neptune Vasilias and Nora Valkyrie, all had to undergo a series of challenges in order to rebuild their strength and recover faster. Although she didn't actively encourage it, Blake's constant one-upping her in the recovery process forced Yang to improve herself. She had to master Total Concentration Breathing by breathing that way for a whole day and she had to strengthen her muscles in order to move faster and hit stronger. For several weeks, Yang did nothing but train and exercise, all while using Total Concentration Breathing, even as she slept. 

By constantly beating Yang in the challenges, Blake was actually helping Yang improve herself by forcing her to get better. By the time Yang finally defeated Blake, she had reached a new level in skill and power as a rising Grimm slayer. Because of what Blake did for her, even if it wasn't intentional, Yang had to pay her a visit before she left for another mission to say her thanks.

It didn't take long for Yang to find Blake; she was sitting on the deck by the training grounds. She was all alone for some reason. "Hey, there you are!" Yang said, catching Blake's attention, "Blake! We're heading out now! Thank you for everything!"

No response. Instead, Blake just smiled at Yang. It was the same, empty smile that she gave to everyone. Although she looked happy, Yang couldn't help but feel nervous since she wasn't sure what Blake was thinking. _How come you can't just tell me what you're feeling,_ Yang thought to herself, _what am I supposed to get from your smile-_

All of a sudden, Blake reached into her pocket and pulled out what appeared to be a bronze coin. "Hey, what is that?" Yang asked. 

Once again, no response from Blake. Instead, she flipped the coin high up and caught it as it came back down. Looking into her palm, Blake saw that the coin had landed on TAILS.

_Huh, I wonder what that was for-_

"All I did was follow Master Kali Belladonna's instructions," Blake suddenly said, startling Yang, "There's no need for you to thank me. Farewell."

Yang couldn't help but smile. _Hey, you talked to me! She finally talked!_

"What was that you just flipped?" Yang asked excitedly. Now that she finally got through to Blake, she wanted to push forward and get to know her better. At the very least, she wanted to have a conversation with her.   
  
"Farewell," Blake repeated, still giving the same, empty smile she gave to Yang.   
  
"Was it money?" Yang asked as she took a seat next to Blake, "It says 'HEADS' and 'TAILS', huh? Why did you flip it?"  
  
"Farewell!"  
  
"Whoa, you really made it twirl around! That was one hell of a coin flip!"   
  
This time, instead of just repeating what she said, Blake held up the coin for Yang to see. "I flip this to decide what I haven't been ordered to do. I just decided whether or not to speak to you. 'Don't speak' was heads, and 'Speak' was tails. Because it came up tails, I spoke to you. Farewell!"

Despite the fact that Blake was still smiling at her, Yang couldn't help but feel saddened by what she said. Blake just admitted that she couldn't make decisions on her own and that didn't sit right with Yang. Although Yang didn't know Blake's backstory or why she relied on a coin to make her choices for her, she felt that it was wrong of Blake to leave her fate up to chance. 

"Why don't you decide for yourself?" Yang asked, "Blake, what do you want to do?"  
  
Without dropping her smile, Blake said, "It doesn't matter. Nothing matters to me, so I can't decide for myself."

"I don't think there's anything in this world that doesn't matter. I guess...the voice in your heart is really tiny."

For a second, Yang looked away as she pondered what to do. As she did, Blake's smile finally dropped. She wasn't sure where Yang was going with this but was curious to find out. 

Yang closed her eyes, trying to come up with a solution. "Sure, following orders is important, but," she said to herself. Suddenly, it hit her. The perfect plan to get Blake to think for herself, to be more independent and do what she wanted to do, instead of just letting random chance decide her actions. 

_If she only makes a decision based on the flip of a coin...then I'll flip for Blake's independence!_

"Hey, can I borrow that for a second?" Yang asked, gesturing to Blake's coin. Blake, still not sure where Yang was going with this, handed the coin over to her.   
  
"Thank you!" Yang cheered. She then stood up and walked over to the middle of the training ground. "All right, let's toss this to decide!"

"Decide what?" Blake asked. 

"Whether or not," Yang said as she did a practice flip, "you're going to listen hard to the voice in your own heart from now on!"

Blake's eyes widened, now realizing what Yang was intending to do. Yang then flipped the coin, sending it several feet into the air. She started to panic since she underestimated how strong the flip was going to be. _Damn it Yang...maybe next time, turn OFF the Total Concentration Breathing!_

"Ahhh, I flipped it too high!" Yang yelped as she tried to keep her eyes on the coin, "Heads! Blake, let's make it heads! If it comes up heads, Blake, you're going to follow your heart!" 

Blake kept her eyes on the coin, her heart racing due to what was at stake with this coin flip. This wasn't just some simple choice, like talking to people or deciding what to eat; this was going to decide how she would live from now on. 

A sudden gust of wind caused Blake to shut her eyes. As soon as she opened them, she started to panic when she saw that Yang was still scrambling around the area trying to catch the coin. Because her eyes were closed for a brief second, Blake lost track of the coin and couldn't tell which side it was on now. In addition, Yang had her back turned to Blake. Even if Blake had kept her eyes on the coin, she wouldn't be able to see it now since Yang's back would hide it from her view. 

"Huh, where did it go?!" Yang yelped, "Oh, is that it?! Oh, it is, it is!" Yang held her hand up and managed to grab the coin before it hit the ground. She then placed it on the back of her other hand and covered it to make sure she didn't spoil the result. "Got it! Got it! Blake, look!"

Yang walked back to Blake, excited to reveal the answer. Blake's heart started beating faster. This was the moment of truth and she wasn't sure if she was ready for the answer. 

"Ready, Blake?" Yang asked. 

_Which is it,_ Blake thought to herself, sweat dripping down from her forehead out of anxiety, _her back was blocking it, so I couldn't see it the moment it fell._

Slowly...Yang lifted her hand up to reveal the answer. 

**HEADS**

"It's heads!" Yang said with glee. She leaped up, overjoyed that it was the result she was hoping for. Blake stared at her, shocked. She wasn't sure how to take all of this. One minute, she was just relaxing by the training grounds, the next, her whole life was changed by Yang flipping a coin. There was so much to take in all at once. 

"Blake!" Yang said, turning her attention back to her. She held out the coin, which Blake reached out to grab. 

Just as Blake reached out to take her coin back, Yang suddenly took Blake by the hand, making her gasp. Blake started to blush as the blonde slayer stared at her. "Good luck!" Yang said, "It's the heart that drives people! So, your heart can grow as strong as you want it to! All right, I'll see you again someday!"

At that, Yang let go of Blake's hand and waved her goodbye. All Blake could do was whimper, not sure how to respond. Aside from the Belladonnas, no one had ever cared about how she felt. Even Master Kali had issues with her when she first started training. But yet, this random Grimm slayer who Blake barely knew had cared enough about her, to the point that the slayer wanted to change Blake's life for the better. It was such a small gesture with the coin flip but for Blake, this changed her forever.

As Yang turned to leave to join the rest of her crew, Blake stood up and called out to her. "H-how did you make it come up heads?!" Blake yelled. 

Yang stopped and turned around. Blake stared back at her, waiting for an answer. She wanted to know if it was really by chance or if this was all Yang's doing, that she somehow manipulated the flip to get her to change. 

_I saw her hand when she flipped it,_ Blake thought, _I'm sure she didn't cheat._

Much to Blake's surprise, Yang started smiling back at her. "Just by chance," she said, "And if it was tails, I was going to keep tossing it over and over until it came up heads! Take care!" Yang then smiled back at Blake, proud of herself for what she did. 

Blake's eyes widened. She was correct that Yang didn't cheat. But what made her heart flutter was that even if Yang lost the coin flip, she was just going to keep flipping it for Blake's sake.

Yang was going to do that for her...for a stranger who she barely knew. 

As Yang left the area, Blake looked back at her coin. She hugged it close to her, feeling that things were going to be different now. But deep down, she felt it was going to be for the better.

_Thank you Yang...thank you._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The following segments are based on: 
> 
> 1\. Point Break (1991)  
> 2\. Parks and Recreation (season 5, episode 1)  
> 3\. Uncharted 4 - A Thief's End (2016)  
> 4\. Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)  
> 5\. The Terminator (1984)  
> 6\. Transformers (2007) - AN: Yes, Yang would be Charlie Watson in the "Bumblebee" spin-off movie, hence why Sun is the current owner of the car. I made sure to think ahead in case I ever do the Transformers movies.  
> 7\. Demon Slayer (season 1, episode 26)
> 
> Author's note: I was originally planning on doing this special as one giant block but I wanted to publish the chapter on the day of Valentine's Day. So, I'm splitting the special into two major chapters, one for today, the other for tomorrow. Sorry y'all, law school's eating up my time. I would've finished all the segments by today if it weren't for my studies. But regardless, enjoy the chapter! Part 2 coming real soon!


	40. Valentine's Day Special 2021 (Part 2 of 2)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Happy Valentine's Day!
> 
> To celebrate this day of love, enjoy this montage of famous movie/TV show/video game scenes, played out by your favorite RWBY ship...

** SEGMENT 8: WhiteRose (Weiss x Ruby) **

** BASED ON: Spider-Man (2002) **

WEISS' POV

_It's her...the Spider-Woman! Why does she look so...familiar?_

Weiss Schnee couldn't believe it. Here she was, making the unfortunate decision to go out into the city alone and at night. Not only did it start to rain heavily, she just had to be cornered by a group of hoodlums who had the worst intentions in mind. She didn't even want to think about what these hoodlums wanted to do with her, the harassing they were doing was enough. 

Then, just before things took a turn for the worse, here comes Vale's famed superheroine, the Spider-Woman. It took less than a minute for Spider-Woman to stop the hoodlums and it wasn't even that close of a fight. She had essentially tossed the hoodlums around like rag dolls. 

But something caught Weiss' eyes. During the scuffle, she noticed that Spider-Woman wasn't wearing her mask. Since it was night, raining, and Spider-Woman was moving around too fast for anyone to keep track, Weiss couldn't get a good look at the vigilante's face. But something about the heroine seemed...familiar. She's seen that short, black hair before but she just couldn't put the pieces together. It was bugging her that there was a possibility that Spider-Woman was someone she knew. 

With the last of the hoodlums defeated, Spider-Woman turned to Weiss. For a second, their eyes met and the world felt like it stopped. Weiss could feel her heart racing as Spider-Woman stared back at her. Weiss then squinted, hoping to get a good look at her savior.

Then, all of a sudden...Spider-Woman ran down an alleyway, fleeing the scene. "Wait!" Weiss called out as she ran after the superheroine. 

_Don't go! I didn't even get a chance to thank you..._

RUBY'S POV

_Stupid! Stupid! You just had to rush into the scene, like an idiot! What if she saw you without your mask on!?_

Ruby Rose let out a sigh of relief when she saw that Weiss didn't get a good look at her face after the scuffle with the hoodlums. Although she wanted Weiss to know it was her, she knew that the less people who knew her secret identity, the better. She didn't want to give her enemies any kind of leverage over her and get her loved ones hurt in the process. Still, it hurt having to lie to Weiss about her double life. This was the woman who she loved, the girl next door who she's admired since childhood. It felt wrong keeping part of her life a secret. 

Seeing Weiss look around the alley for her, Ruby couldn't help but feel a pang in her heart. She wanted to leave but it felt rude to not at least talk to Weiss. After all, she did just save her from the hoodlums. Knowing Weiss, she was probably looking for Spider-Woman to thank her personally.

_Well...I mean, what are the chances that Weiss will figure out who you are with your mask on?_

Although Ruby felt like she was going to regret this move, she started considering actually speaking with Weiss, but with the mask on. She figured that as long as she didn't make it obvious that it was her under the mask, Weiss wouldn't get suspicious about her identity. Plus, the more Ruby thought about it, it wasn't as if Weiss had never spoken to Ruby while she was out as Spider-Woman; it wasn't too long ago that Ruby had saved her from the Green Geist.

_Just a short talk with her...it wouldn't hurt._

Ruby took a deep breath and put her mask on. After making sure it was secure, Ruby mentally switched to Spider-Woman mode and lowered herself down the building to Weiss' level. Since she was using her web to do this, Ruby was upside down, like an actual spider descending down from its web. 

"You have a knack for getting in trouble," Ruby said in her 'Spider-Woman' voice. Although she still wasn't used to using this voice, it was fun to be able to talk as if she had all the confidence in the world. 

Weiss giggled as she turned around to face Ruby. Ruby blushed; something about Weiss smiling always made her heart melt. In addition, even while being drenched in rain, Weiss still looked absolutely amazing. 

"You have a knack for saving my life," Weiss said, taking a step closer into Ruby's personal space, "I think I have a superhero stalker."

 _Well...technically not wrong. Okay, just stay cool, Ruby._ "I was in the neighborhood," Ruby said, hoping her voice didn't let on that what she said was technically not a lie. 

Weiss took a second to gaze at her savior. The blush on Ruby's face increased as she began to wonder what Weiss was thinking. There was something about how Weiss was smiling at her that seemed to suggest something else, something that went beyond the normal gratitude of a person being saved. After a few seconds, Weiss finally said, "You are...amazing."

"Some people don't think so," Ruby said, thinking back to her boss at the Daily Bugle. Her boss, Roman Torchwick, always managed to find a way to criticize the 'Spider-Woman'. Still, she didn't complain since even though she was giving him pictures to sell his story, she still got paid for them. Money was money. 

"But you are," Weiss said.

"Nice to have a fan," Ruby said, grateful that Weiss was sticking up for her. Sometimes, she honestly felt that being Spider-Woman was a thankless job. Still, as her Uncle Qrow told her, 'with great power, comes great responsibility'. Responsibility didn't mean she was entitled to praise and adoration. 

Just then, Ruby noticed a shift in Weiss' eyes. As if she just thought of something at that moment. Before Ruby could ask, Weiss gestured to Ruby's mask, right where her lips would be. "Do I get to say thank you this time?" Weiss asked, suggestively.

Ruby's face had gotten so hot that she felt her mask could burn off at that point. _She wants to kiss me! She wants to kiss me1 Is this really happening?_

Ruby knew that she had to stop this. She was getting to close to Weiss, which meant she was dangerously close to just telling her that she was Spider-Woman. 

And yet.

And yet.

Despite knowing that she couldn't go through with this, Ruby didn't protest when Weiss reached forward and grabbed the hem of her mask. It was only when Weiss started to pull her mask off did Ruby speak up.

"Wait," Ruby said, her face still as red as her name due to this whole situation. Although Ruby intended for Weiss to just stop, Weiss seemed to interpret what Ruby said as to just lower the mask below the lips. You can expose the lips but keep the face covered. And once again, Ruby let her do so.

As Ruby's mind began to explore the consequences of letting Weiss in on her secret, her brain temporarily stopped functioning when Weiss finally pulled her mask down just below her lips. She then leaned in and kissed Ruby right on the lips. 

This was everything Ruby had ever wanted and more. For so long, she had imagined what kissing Weiss would be like. Would it be sweet? Would she smell like the finest perfume? Would she even know what to do in that situation? Is there a right way to kiss someone? Would she compare her to all her other suitors? Would she enjoy the kiss?

Now that it was finally happening, Ruby realized that the real thing was way better than anything she came up with in her imagination. Weiss was soft, warm, and there was a certain "spark" that Ruby was feeling from the kiss. It was hard to describe but it felt like everything was right in the world for once. 

Ruby's life was filled with tragedy; never knew her parents, lost her Uncle Qrow, she was struggling to support her Uncle Clover, and now there was that psychotic Green Geist that she had to deal with. Kissing Weiss made her feel like all her problems had been wrapped up and sent down a river, never to be seen again. Part of Ruby wished she could be in this moment forever. 

_But I can't...not for me...and not for Weiss. Ruby, you're being selfish now...it can never work with Weiss._

At that, Ruby shot a web up and fled the alley. She could hear Weiss giggle below her, amused at how she was leaving the scene.

Even though Ruby had cut the kiss short, she was still grateful that it happened. Although she knew that it was too dangerous to start a relationship with Weiss...at least she knew what it was like to kiss her. In the end, the risk was worth it. 

* * *

**SEGMENT 9: Qrowin/Snowbird (Qrow x Winter) **

** BASED ON: Iron Man 2 (2010)**

QROW'S POV

"You lose."

 _The nerve of this guy._ Qrow Branwen couldn't help but scoff at Yuma, the terrorist who the media had dubbed "Whiplash". Not only did he and his sister, Raven Branwen, beat him, they stopped his army of Ni-Drones from destroying the city. All in a day's work for Iron Man. 

And War Machine, although Qrow still had reservations about his sister taking and keeping one of his suits. 

With the battle won, Qrow walked over to Yuma in order to lift him up and take him straight to the authorities. However, before he could pick Yuma up, the light at the center of Yuma's suit (right where the arc reactor would be) started beeping. It was flashing red, immediately giving both Qrow and Raven bad vibes. 

Suddenly, all the Ni-Drones that they had destroyed earlier started doing the same thing. The dome became enveloped in flashing red lights and beeping noises. As the beeping continued, the Branwen siblings soon noticed that the beeping was slowly picking up speed. Just based on how it sounded, it seemed to resemble...a countdown. As soon as Raven realized that, she turned to her brother. "All these drones are rigged to blow," she said, trying her best not to panic, "We gotta get out of here, Qrow!"

Upon hearing what Raven said, Qrow suddenly remembered something. During the battle at the Branwen Expo, his personal assistant/lead secretary-turned-CEO of Branwen Industries, Winter Schnee, was among the crowd attending Brawnz Ni's demonstration. It then dawned on Qrow that some of the Ni-Drones had been taken down in that area. If those drones were also set to self-destruct, the same with all the downed drones in the dome right now...

"Winter?" Qrow said, hoping she was still on the line. When Winter didn't respond, Qrow immediately flew out of the dome, Raven following closely behind him. 

Raven then split off while Qrow flew towards the convention center, right where all the chaos started. With little time to spare, Qrow had P.E.N.N.Y. kick the suit into full speed. He was determined not to lose Winter, especially not after defeating Yuma. _Come on, Qrow,_ he thought to himself, _you've done nothing but let her down ever since the palladium poisoning in your body started. Don't you dare fail her now!_

WINTER'S POV

Back at the convention center, Winter Schnee was by herself after being left by her brother Whitley and the new girl, Harlow Brentley (which Winter was sure was not the woman's real name). Despite them leaving, she still had quite a busy night. First, she had to direct the police during the whole chaos caused by the Ni-Drones. Then, she had to make sure that Brawnz Ni was arrested for his role in the chaos. Sure, Yuma was the one directly responsible, but it was Brawnz who broke him out of prison and gave him the resources to enact his plan. 

As Winter stood outside the center, she began hearing a strange beeping noise coming from one of the Ni-Drones that Qrow Branwen had taken down. Its chest light was flashing red, despite the drone clearly being destroyed. _Hmm...what's going on here? Is it rebooting? Wait...maybe it's trying to-_

**SWOOSH!**

Winter didn't have time to react as she was suddenly lifted up off the ground. She saw that it was Qrow, who was still in his Iron Man suit. Without bothering to explain why he had suddenly grabbed her, Qrow flew away from the convention center with Winter still in his arms. 

_QROW, WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?! YOU DRUNKEN FOOL, WHERE ARE YOU TAKING US?! PUT ME DOWN THIS INSTANT-_

**BOOM!**

Although her voice was drowned out by the wind, Winter was screaming when she saw that the Ni-Drone that she was staring at had suddenly exploded. That was followed by several other explosions, with the biggest one at the Oracle Dome center where Qrow had told her earlier that he had been dying for reasons unknown.

The fact that Winter was seconds away from dying in an explosion suddenly made her feel sick. If it wasn't for Qrow's sudden rescue, she wouldn't have been able to get away from the area in time. Although she was grateful that he got to her before the Ni-Drone exploded, it was at this point that Winter had finally had enough of the superhero lifestyle. It was bad enough that she had to run an entire company, now she had to worry about being killed by robots?

QROW'S POV

As the Ni-Drones exploded behind him, Qrow decided to land on the roof of a building that was far from any of the explosions. Due to the fact that his suit was still damaged thanks to Yuma and his drones, by the time he landed on the roof, his suit was close to falling apart. Winter, annoyed and stressed out over the fact that she was seconds away from being killed by a Ni-Drone, shoved Qrow away. Qrow, wanting to talk to Winter about what just happened, took his helmet off and chucked it away. The helmet sparked as it came off, a sign that the damage done to the suit was critical. 

Winter had her face buried in her hands. Although Qrow's seen Winter stressed before, this was the most stressed he's even see her. "Oh, my God!" she screamed at him, "I can't take this any more!"

"You can't?!" Qrow said, cringing slightly at how negative he sounded. He didn't mean to criticize but after spending the last few days dying from palladium poisoning, dealing with a terrorist who wanted revenge for something that happened between their fathers, and being observed by James Ironwood and all of Atlas-S.H.I.E.L.D., he felt that he was the one who should be having the breakdown. 

"I can't take this!" Winter snapped back.

"Winter, look at me!"

"My body, literally, cannot handle the stress! I never know if you're gonna...uh...kill yourself or-or-or-or wreck the whole company!"

"Wait, wait, wait! I think I did okay!"

"I-I-I-I quit! I'm resigning! That's it!"

Qrow stopped talking and just stared at Winter. After everything that's happened between them, Qrow didn't believe Winter for a single second. She was there during his dark period when he was at peace with being known as the "merchant of death". She was there for him when he closed the weapons division of Branwen Industries and nearly sunk the whole company. She was there for him for nearly every terrible thing that's happened in his life. So when she said that she had finally reached the breaking point, Qrow couldn't help but doubt her words. 

And if she was telling the truth, Qrow already decided that he was going to do whatever it took to convince her to stay with him. 

"What did you just say?" Qrow asked, taking a step closer to Winter, "You're done?" Winter didn't respond. But because she didn't say anything, Qrow assumed that either she meant what she said or she wasn't sure herself. 

_Okay, Miss Schnee...let's see just how 'done' you really are._ "That's surprising," Qrow said, changing his tone to lighten the mood, "No, it's not surprising. I get it. You don't have to make any excuses-"

"I'm...I'm...I'm not making any excuses!" Winter, slightly annoyed at what Qrow said, took a step closer to him. She wasn't sure where he was going with this but she definitely didn't like being accused of making excuses. 

"You actually were just making excuses," Qrow retorted, taking another step forward, "But you don't have to-"

"-no, I wasn't making an excuse," Winter snapped back, taking another step forward as she did, "I'm actually very justified!"

"Listen! Hey, hey! You deserve better."

At that, Winter couldn't help but smile sadly at Qrow. "Well," she said, unsure what to say next. 

Qrow, seeing Winter's hesitation, decided to press on. "You've taken such good care of me. I've been in a tough spot, but you got me through it, so...right?"

"Thank you."

"Yeah."

"Thank you for understanding."

"Yeah, yeah. Let's talk clean-up."

"I'll handle the transition. It'll be smooth."

"Okay. What about the press? Because you only had the job for a week. That's gonna seem-"

"-well, with you it's like dog years."

"I know."

"I mean, it's like the Presidency-"

Qrow wasn't sure what spurred him on. It was either the fact that Winter was planning to leave the company, the fact they both almost died to a madman, or the fact that they had subconsciously gotten into each other's personal space during their argument. It was when they started talking about company transition that Qrow had noticed he was just a few inches away from Winter's face. He wasn't sure how to explain it but he felt a spark in the air. Something that told him that this was his chance to make his move. And make it, he did.

He's kissed dozens of women in the past. Most of them were one-night stands, never to be seen again. Of course, there was the occasional girlfriend, but those relationships never lasted and, at best, only survived for a week or two. Qrow always wondered what it would be like to kiss Winter Schnee. He's always thought that she was beautiful, and it helped that she could match him in terms of wits and sarcasm. Now that he was finally kissing her, he only had one thought;

This is easily the best kiss I've ever gotten. 

As Qrow and Winter broke off their kiss, Qrow couldn't help but feel awkward about what just happened. He was sure that Winter was going to slap him right then and there. However, she had reciprocated the kiss. Still, Qrow wasn't sure what to make of the situation. "Weird?" he asked, hoping she would say no. 

Winter softly smiled back at him, putting him at ease. "No, it's not weird," she said.

"It's okay, right?"

"Yeah."

"Okay, run that by me again." Qrow then leaned forward to kiss Winter once again. Just as the two of them were enjoying the moment-

"-I think it was weird."

 _Oh, come on! Not now!_ Qrow and Winter broke off the kiss and turned to the other side of the roof. Much to Qrow's annoyance, he saw that Raven Branwen was sitting on top of one of the roof vents, just casually watching the two of them. Raven was still in the War Machine suit, but with the helmet faceplate lifted up. Raven was smiling at both Qrow and Winter, amused by what they were doing.

"You guys look like two seals fighting over a grape," Raven said, causing Winter to frown. 

"I had just quit, actually," Winter said, a bit too defensively.

Picking up on Winter's tone, Qrow said, "Yeah, so we're not-"

"You don't have to do that," Raven interrupted, rolling her eyes as she did, "I heard the whole thing."

 _Damn it, Rae, you're ruining everything! Just leave us already!_ "You should get lost," Qrow said, extremely annoyed at his sister at the moment.

Raven shrugged. "I was here first. Get a roof."

Although he was still annoyed at her, Qrow couldn't help but chuckle. _Okay...that was a decent one, I'll give you that._ "I thought you were out of one-liners," Qrow said.

"That's the last one."

"Hey, you kicked ass back there, by the way."

"Thank you. You, too. Now, Qrow, just letting you know...my car got taken out in the explosion, so I'm gonna have to hang on to your suit for a minute, okay? Don't worry, I'll take good care of the suit."

Qrow frowned. Although Raven proved she could take care of the suit (for the most part), he didn't like the idea of her keeping one permanently. Besides, he had money. He could easily buy her a new car. "Not okay. Not okay with that."

Raven, not even acknowledging what Qrow said, dropped her faceplate down and got her thrusters ready for take-off. "Yeah, Qrow...that wasn't a question." She then blasted off, leaving Qrow and Winter alone. 

Qrow sighed. _Why do I have this feeling that letting Raven keep the suit is gonna bite me in the ass?_

Despite thinking that, Qrow pushed that thought to the side when he suddenly remembered that Winter was still there. While he had to deal with Raven eventually, he wanted to spend the rest of the night with his...girlfriend. 

_Well...that's gonna take some getting used to._ "By the way," Qrow said, playfully, "How are you gonna resign...if I don't accept?"

At that, Winter started laughing. Although she didn't say it out loud, it was at that point that Qrow realized she never planned on leaving his side. Just as he thought. 

* * *

**SEGMENT 10: Arkos (Jaune x Pyrrha) **

** BASED ON: Wonder Woman (2017)**

The night after the battle of Kenyte was a nice change of pace for Pyrrha Nikos and Jaune Arc. After spending the last few days trekking across war-torn Vacuo, they now had a night of peace and calm after clearing out the Mistralian enemy forces that had been occupying the settlement. It was a relief for both the Vacuan soldiers and the Kenyte civilians, especially since the fight over the settlement had been in a stalemate for the past few weeks. 

For that, the soldiers and the civilians credited Pyrrha as being the one who finally broke the stalemate. She was the only person who had successfully crossed 'no man's land' and because of that, the Vacuan soldiers were able to overrun the Mistralian forces. Turns out, having a person with superpowers was more than enough to tip the scales in war. 

Jaune, who was convinced that the fight for Kenyte was unwinnable, couldn't believe that he was sitting in the town square, enjoying a pint of ale with the Wonder Woman herself. Then again, he had come across a lot of things he couldn't believe existed in the past few days; an island of super women, deadly weapons that could wipe out whole battalions, learning that the actual god of war could be behind all of this. Of all the things he couldn't believe were real, he was glad that someone as good and powerful as Pyrrha Nikos existed. "You did this," he said to Pyrrha, making the Sanctum warrior smile. 

"No, we did," Pyrrha answered. Although she was the one who crossed 'no man's land', she didn't like taking full credit, especially since she wouldn't have won the day without the help of the soldiers. It was nice to be praised, but she felt the praise shouldn't be restricted just to her. 

As the night wore on, Jaune and Pyrrha noticed that some of the Kenyte townspeople were starting to dance as part of enjoying their first night of peace. Curious, Jaune turned to Pyrrha. "Do you have dancing on...Paradise Island?" Jaune asked. He wasn't on Pyrrha's home island for that long, so there were still plenty of aspects of her culture that he had questions about. 

Pyrrha couldn't help but chuckle. _Oh come on, just because we're not part of the "modern world" doesn't mean we're primitive!_ "Dancing, yeah!" Pyrrha chirped, "Of course. But these people are just...swaying."

Jaune scoffed. He put his cup of ale down and stood up, facing Pyrrha as he did. "Okay, if you're going to be fighting the god of war," he said, "I may as well teach you how to dance, you poor thing. All right, probably without the gun." Jaune grunted as he unhooked his gun belt and placed it on the ground. He then held his hand out to Pyrrha. Pyrrha couldn't help but blush at the gesture, instantly recognizing what Jaune was trying to do. 

"Madame," Jaune continued, "If you would."

Pyrrha smiled and placed her cup of ale down as well. She then stood up and took Jaune's hand. "Well, if I'm going to a gala," she said, "I'll need to know-"

"-you're not going to the gala."

"Of course I am!"

"No, you're not."

"Why wouldn't I?"

"Well, for one, you don't know how to dance."

"I would argue that, they...don't know how to dance."

"Hey, hey, be polite, be polite." As they were talking, Jaune walked Pyrrha over to the town square, right where all the couples were dancing, or 'swaying' as Pyrrha said. Turning to face Pyrrha, Jaune took a deep breath, ready to show off the dancing skills he picked up from boarding school.

"All right, so, give me your hand," Jaune said, taking Pyrrha's hand as he did, "Like so. And I'm gonna put my arm around you, like so. And we just...what did you call it? Sway? Then you just sway."

As Jaune and Pyrrha began swaying to the music being played, Pyrrha's earlier blush had gotten redder when she realized just how close she was to Jaune. She always thought he was quite handsome for a human male but now that he was this close to her...close enough that he could lean in and...

Pyrrha shook the thought off when she realized that her face was getting hot. _Come on, Pyrrha, you're supposed to be a warrior! You're acting like an overexcited teenager!_

"You're awfully close," Pyrrha said, trying her best to stay calm. 

Jaune nodded his head. "That's what it's all about," he said.

"I see." Although she made fun of the couples earlier, she was starting to see why people danced this way. Maybe this wasn't the most technical of dances, but the level of intimacy that came from this dance definitely made up for it. 

As the two swayed, they suddenly heard singing coming from the parlor behind them. Turning to see who it was, they were surprised when they saw that it was Scarlet David. David, the team's sniper, had frozen earlier during the battle of Kenyte. The team didn't hate him for that since they knew he was suffering from some form of PTSD. Still, they knew how much it had hurt his pride to not be able to perform when they needed him the most. Now, to see that he was singing and letting himself relax, it filled with Jaune and Pyrrha with joy and hope that something good could come out of this Great War. 

"I haven't heard him sing in years," Jaune whispered, still surprised. He chuckled, happy for his teammate. 

Just then, Pyrrha noticed that the weather was slowly changing. The night was already cold but now, snow started to fall from the skies. Pyrrha giggled since she had only ever seen snow in her books about the world outside of the island. Seeing snow in person, Pyrrha couldn't help but feel enchanted by it. 

"It's...it's a snowfall," Jaune said, noticing the snow as well. He looked at Pyrrha, amused at her reaction to the change in weather. "Go ahead, touch it."

Pyrrha laughed when she felt some of the snow land on her forehead. It was cold but light to the touch. "It's magical!" she said to Jaune. 

"It is, isn't it? Yeah it is."

Turning back to Jaune, it was starting to occur to Pyrrha that there was a lot more about the outside world that she had questions about. For the past few days, she had seen nothing but death and suffering, the result of a war that had no end in sight. The 'war to end all wars', as Jaune Arc described it. But here she was now, dancing with Jaune as snow fell around her. Scarlet David was singing to his heart's content and all the townspeople were enjoying themselves for the first time in months. It was hard to reconcile the images of the war-torn world with what she was seeing right now. 

_Is this what peacetime looks like in the outside world? What is the outside world like without constant destruction? Is it like home...or is it something different? Jaune Arc, what are your people really like?_

"Is this what people do when there are no wars to fight?" Pyrrha whispered, unsure if Jaune was comfortable answering her question. 

Jaune paused for a few seconds before answering. He then said, "Yeah. Yeah, this and other things."

"What things?"

"Umm...well...they have breakfast. They really love a breakfast. And...um, they love to wake up, and read the paper and go to work. They get married. Make some babies, grow old together. I guess."

At first, Pyrrha was smiling at Jaune's description of a world without war. It seemed so mundane and yet, desirable, especially compared to the world right now. It was when Jaune mentioned growing old that made Pyrrha frown. 

_Oh...that's right...he's human. I'm...not._

For the first time since leaving the island, Pyrrha began to wonder if she truly had a place in the outside world. She didn't age as the humans did and knowing that made her realize that her time with Jaune Arc would be cut short no matter what. Even if he lived to old age, she would still be as young as she was right now. To most people, that would be a blessing. But to Pyrrha, she began to wonder if it was more of a curse. That maybe having a short lifespan like the humans did made you appreciate life more.

"What is it like?" Pyrrha asked. 

Jaune didn't know what to say. He wasn't married, he didn't have kids, and the only job he's ever truly worked was in the military. He wasn't even sure what his life would be outside of the Great War, especially since he had no idea if the war would ever end. With no other way of answering Pyrrha's question, Jaune reluctantly said, "I have no idea."

Pyrrha stared back at him. She wasn't sure how to take his answer. 

Jaune, unsure what to make of Pyrrha's stare at him, decided to keep quiet. He then gently tucked her hair behind her ears, hoping that would ease her mind.

**A FEW MINUTES LATER...**

With the gala coming up soon, Jaune and Pyrrha decided to retire for the night. Jaune escorted her to one of the rooms that the Kenyte civilians said they could stay in, which was just above the parlor where Scarlet David was performing. As Jaune made his way back to his room, he turned to Pyrrha and noticed that she was staring right at him. He started to blush when he realized why she was staring right at him, her eyes boring into his soul. 

She didn't have to say anything. Jaune instantly knew from the look she was giving him that she wanted him to spend the night with her. Not wanting to disappoint, Jaune closed the door behind him and walked back to Pyrrha.

Their movements were slow and deliberate. Jaune didn't want to move quickly since he felt intimidated by her. She was basically a god amongst humans, he didn't want to come off as...disappointing. 

For Pyrrha, she took it slow since this was her first time being with anyone. She was glad that it would be with someone as sweet and loving as Jaune Arc, but she still felt nervous about being this intimate with him. 

Neither of them rushed the moment. First, they moved towards each other, then they held each other close. Not quite kissing or hugging, but close enough to feel the warmth coming from each other. As the tension built, both Jaune and Pyrrha slowly leaned in. When their lips finally touched, all their insecurities and worried thoughts from earlier seemed to melt away. 

There was plenty of things they had to worry about; the war, their lives after the war, etc.. But just for that night, none of that mattered. They were together and that was enough. 

* * *

**SEGMENT 11: Rosegarden (Ruby x Oscar) **

** BASED ON: Stranger Things (season 1, episode 8)**

CAST (both seen and unseen, writing the cast list out now in case I ever decide to do a full Stranger Things episode)

  1. Subject 11, ID# RUR05E. One of Arthur Watts' test subjects who had broken free from captivity. Due to Subject 11's ID number, Oscar Pine ended up nicknaming her "Ruby Rose". (counterpart: Eleven)
  2. Oscar Pine, a young boy attending Beacon Academy (counterpart: Mike Wheeler)
  3. Fiona Thyme, one of Oscar's friends (counterpart: Dustin Henderson)
  4. Lie Ren, one of Oscar's friends (counterpart: Lucas Sinclair) 
  5. Chief Qrow Branwen, Vale's head of police (counterpart: Jim Hopper) 
  6. Willow Schnee, a Vale citizen whose son went missing (counterpart: Joyce Byers) 
  7. Whitley Schnee, Willow's son who went missing for reasons unknown (counterpart: Will Byers) 
  8. Weiss Schnee, Willow's daughter who is trying to find her missing brother (counterpart: Jonathan Byers) 
  9. Yang Xiao Long, Oscar's step-sister who joins the search for Whitley Schnee (counterpart: Nancy Wheeler) 
  10. Arthur Watts, a corrupt scientist who comes to Vale searching for Subject 11 (counterpart: Martin Brenner) 
  11. Raven Branwen, Yang's mother who always seems to be aloof (counterpart: Karen Wheeler)
  12. Ozpin, Oscar's father who never seems to know what's going on (counterpart: Ted Wheeler)
  13. Jaune Arc, Nancy's boyfriend who gets jealous over her spending time with Weiss (counterpart: Steve Harrington)
  14. Nora Valkyrie, the new girl in Vale who joins Oscar's friend group (counterpart: Max Mayfield) 
  15. Cardin Winchester, Nora's abusive step-brother (counterpart: Billy Hargrove)



"Oscar, I found the chocolate pudding!"

Oscar Pine groaned when he realized that it was Fiona Thyme calling out from the kitchen area. He had warned both Fiona and Lie Ren not to go through Beacon Academy's refrigerators but neither one of them listened. _Crap...how are we going to explain to the staff that boxes of chocolate pudding just disappeared overnight?_

"Okay!" Oscar called out. Due to how loud and sudden his yell was, Ruby Rose, who was sitting across from him on the table, flinched a little. Immediately, Oscar felt bad since he had forgotten that he was keeping her company until Sheriff Qrow Branwen and Willow Schnee came back from the Upside Down. Although he had only known her for a week, he felt like he had grown close to her in that time. The last thing he wanted to do was scare her off again. 

"Are you feeling any better?" Oscar asked. 

Ruby nodded her head. She knew that he was talking about her time in the makeshift sensory deprivation tank (which was basically a pool with salt water) in order to reach out to Whitley Schnee. Although it was a terrifying ordeal, she had dealt with worse in the past. She was feeling better, especially now that she was talking to Oscar. "What's 'putting'?" she asked. 

Oscar wasn't sure whether to smile at how cute she was being for not knowing what pudding was or frown because the reason why she knew so little of the outside world was because she grew up in Arthur Watts' dungeons. To just be poked and prodded for her powers, like an ordinary lab rat. "Pudding," Oscar said, trying his best not to sound condescending, "It's this chocolate goo you eat with a spoon."

Immediately, Ruby started to frown. Admittedly, Oscar thought to himself that maybe he should've not said 'goo' since even he didn't like the way that word sounded. Quickly recovering from that mishap, Oscar said, "Don’t worry, when all this is over, you won’t have to keep eating junk food and leftovers like a dog anymore. My step-mom, she’s a pretty awesome cook. She can make you whatever you like."

Ruby's face lit up at the sound of food. "Eggos?" she asked, innocently.

Oscar nodded. Although he was amused by how Ruby considered Eggo waffles to be her go-to comfort food, part of him felt bad since he was the one who introduced them to her and that she considered Eggo waffles to be some sort of luxury item. It only emphasized just how poorly treated she was under Watts' care, that her favorite food was plain old waffles. "Well, yeah, Eggos, but real food, too," Oscar said, "See, I was thinking, once all this is over and Whitley’s back and you’re not a secret anymore, my parents can get you an actual bed for the basement. Or you can take my room if you want, since I’m down there all the time anyways. My point is, they’ll take care of you. They’ll be like your new parents, and Yang, she’ll be like your new sister."

Ruby smiled at the idea of having a family. The closest she had to a family before all of this was Arthur Watts. However, he never truly felt like a father, especially considering the way he treated her. Oscar, Fiona, Lie, and everyone else who was part of the group...this was her family now. "Will you be like my brother?" Ruby asked, a bit too happily. She immediately frowned when she saw Oscar's face contort in disgust. 

"What?" Oscar said, as if Ruby had just insulted him with her words, "No, no!"

"Why 'no'?"

And just like that, Oscar froze. He didn't want to say it out loud but as soon as Ruby pressed him on this issue, he knew he had to answer her directly. Thinking back to earlier that night, he remembered how he and Yang had questioned each other on their respective partners. 

When Oscar asked if Yang had dumped Jaune for Weiss, Yang immediately denied that was the case.

When Yang asked if Oscar had feelings for Ruby, Oscar had done the same thing. 

Now, Oscar wasn't sure if Yang was lying (although his gut was telling him that she was), but he couldn't deny that he was 100% lying to Yang's face. He hated just how correct Yang was about his feelings towards Ruby. He couldn't help it; although he had only known her for a week, she was still one of the sweetest girls he had ever talked to. He liked hanging out with her and how he could show her all his geeky stuff without being ridiculed for it. He liked how they both helped each other in their own, unique way. Oscar would teach her social skills and how to be "normal" while Ruby would save him in dangerous situations, like when they had to escape from the Vale agents sent by Arthur Watts.

And then, there was the fact that Oscar thought she was cute. Even with her head shaved, Oscar still thought she was pretty. He had let her known earlier that she was still pretty without her blonde wig she had used for a disguise. For Oscar, the hair really wasn't an issue. Just one smile from her could make his heart melt. 

_Crap...okay, think Oscar...you can talk your way out of this. Just answer Ruby's question without offending her! And whatever you do, don't tell her that you don't want to be her brother-figure because you really want to kiss her on the lips!_

"Because," Oscar said, choosing his words carefully, "Because...it’s different."

"Why?" Ruby asked, still not picking up on what Oscar was trying to get at.

"I mean...I don’t know, I guess it’s not. It’s stupid."

"Oscar?"

"Yeah?"

"Friends don’t lie."

Oscar sighed at that. That was one of the first things he had taught Ruby, that friends never lie to one another. Cornered, Oscar took a deep breath. _Okay Oscar...this is your chance. Just...be cool. Now, if I were to ask Ruby out, where should we go? Hmm...well...there is one thing._

"Well...I was thinking," Oscar said, "I don’t know...maybe we can go to the Beacon Winter Dance together?

"Beacon Winter Dance”?

"It’s this cheesy school dance, where you go in the gym and dance to music and stuff. I’ve never been, but I know you’re not supposed to go with your sister."

"No?"

"I mean...you can, but it’d be really weird. You go to school dances with someone that, you know...someone that you like."

"A friend?"

"Not a friend. Uh...uh...uh, someone like a..." _Damn it Oscar, what are you doing? Just go for it! This is your chance! Stop overthinking things!_

And that's when Oscar went for it. As soon as he mustered the energy to do so, he pushed his doubts aside and leaned in, kissing her right on the lips. 

Ruby, surprised by what Oscar just did, closed her eyes. 

It only lasted for a few seconds. When Oscar broke off the kiss, he was cursing himself mentally for what just happened. This was his first kiss and he felt like he had done everything wrong. When he compared himself to his heroes like Han Solo or Indiana Jones, he was dismayed by the fact that they had made kissing look way easier than it was in real life. He felt like he had just punched Ruby in the face, that his technique was all wrong. He also began stressing over other details, such as that he broke the kiss off too early or that he came at her at the wrong angle. 

Oscar was ready to apologize for that horrid kiss. But when he saw Ruby's reaction, he felt his heart melt once again.

She was smiling at him. Suddenly, all the things that Oscar was feeling didn't matter. He was worried that she didn't like the kiss and yet here she was, smiling wide at him. At that, Oscar couldn't help but smile back. It was his first kiss, probably Ruby's as well, and it turned out well for both of them. 

* * *

** SEGMENT 12: Phoenix (Raven x Taiyang) **

** BASED ON: Daredevil (season 2, episode 5)**

** NOTE 1: Consider this being in canon with the 3AM chapters aka the "James Ironwood is the Punisher" universe **

** NOTE 2: In case you're wondering how the RWBY-Netflix Marvel shows would be set up, we have 1) Taiyang Xiao Long as Daredevil, 2) James Ironwood as the Punisher, 3) Ghira Belladonna as Luke Cage, 4) Coco Adel as Jessica Jones, 5) Oscar Pine as Iron Fist **

_Alright, Tai...stay calm...and get this nice lady a drink._

Taiyang Xiao Long couldn't believe his luck. One minute, he was hanging out with his best friend, Li Ren, in the kitchen area eating caviar with a spoon. The next minute, he was chatting up a beautiful woman who decided to give him the time of day. At least, he had a gut feeling that this woman was beautiful. He was blind but his other senses were heightened to the point that he had enough information to confirm the woman's beauty. Every little detail mesmerized him.

The expensive bracelets that jangled on her wrists.

The sound of her voice, reminding him of a royal maiden who lived among the upper-class. 

The smell of her perfume which he picked up several feet away. 

The movements of her hair, which helped form the image of the woman's face to him. 

Everything about this woman was intoxicating. Still, he couldn't help but wonder why she wanted to waste her time with someone like him. He was just some law school student who somehow snuck into a party that was way above his paygrade. And yet, Tai didn't care. He was just grateful that this beautiful woman was even speaking with him. 

Speaking directly to the bartender, Tai said, "Hey, I'm gonna have a Macallan, neat, and the lady will have, uh...another vodka martini." Tai felt proud of himself for that one. Even though he couldn't see it, he knew that the beautiful lady enjoyed a martini based on the vibrations he felt coming from her last glass. It didn't matter what the bartender did, Tai always found a way to break down the contents of the drinks through his powers. 

The woman smirked, looking somewhat impressed. "Perceptive," she said.

"Thank you, I try," Tai replied, still feeling like he was on the right path. 

Then, the woman decided to burst his bubble. "But I can order my own drinks," she said, "Tequila. Mezcal, if you have it."

As the bartender got to work on the drinks, Taiyang tried his best to recover. Brushing off the slight jab at his pride, Tai said, "So, thanks for your help. It's hard to find reliable security these days."

_There you go, Tai. Just compliment her. She's the reason why you made it past the bouncer in the first place. Now, let's see what she has to say about that-_

"Nice shoes," the woman suddenly said. Just to show that she wasn't just messing around, she had actually looked down to see what Tai was wearing. Tai knew that as well since he felt her head move down for just a brief second. 

"What?" Tai asked, legitimately confused. 

"Wingtips. Good call. Shine them yourself?"

Tai chuckled, surprised at what he just heard. _That's...exactly what I did before coming to this party. Is this woman psychic?_ "How'd you know?" Tai asked, out loud. 

The woman looked away, unimpressed at Tai's question. "You're not exactly a tough read," she said as she took a sip of her tequila. 

"I...could surprise you."

"Doubt it."

Tai scoffed. _You challenging me? Okay...okay, I see where this is headed._ "All right," Tai said, taking a sip of his own drink, "You, uh, wanna give it a try?" Tai wasn't sure where he was going with this but he was having fun. Plus, it felt like the woman was challenging him...and he loved a good challenge. 

The woman turned to Tai, still unimpressed with him. "Okay," she said, "You desperately want to belong somewhere...with someone. Which is the real reason why you sneak into fancy faculty parties. Not because you're sick of your ramen...and video games routine. And now...your mind is racing. You're wondering what you can possibly say or do to keep me on the line, because the last thing you want is to spend the rest of the evening with that scotch...and that shaggy-haired friend of yours."

Tai had to chuckle there. _Maybe I shouldn't have talked about Li Ren, now she thinks I'm trying to avoid him._

"You know what your problem is?" the woman continued, "You're pretty. You even work the blind thing. But you're dumb. You lost before you even stepped to the plate."

The woman looked away and took another sip of her tequila. After the woman finished her complete assessment of Tai, Tai couldn't help but chuckle. With just very little to go on, this woman thought she could read him like an open book. Not that she was wrong, he just found it amusing that she felt like she knew him just based on how he shined his shoes. "You get all of that from a pair of old wingtips?" Tai asked. 

"Quick study," the woman replied. 

Tai smiled again. _Okay...two can play this game._ Tai then took another sip of his drink before turning back to the woman. "You wanna know what I think?" he asked

The woman took in a deep breath and let it out, as if to say that she was a little annoyed with his persistence. "Mmm...tell me."

"I think the game's just beginning." 

At that, the woman chuckled. It wasn't a derisive laughter, it was more that she was just as amused by Tai as he was of her. Even after tearing him apart in her assessment, she was still having fun with him. That alone made her more desirable to Tai...and increased his resolve to win her over. 

Now that it was his turn, just like what the woman did earlier, Tai began forming a hypothesis based on the few things he knew about her. The expensive clothing, the high-quality drinks, the way she acted and talked...it was almost too easy for him. If he were an open book, she was a book that could've been read by kids. 

"Because despite your artisan tequilas and charm-school manners," Tai started, "Despite being richer than God and having the whole world at your fingertips...you're just bored."

That caused the woman to drop her smirk. She then turned to him, looking genuinely curious in what he had to say next. Tai smiled at that; based on her reaction, he knew he had her. 

"Really?" she asked. 

"Bored enough to spend your time studying a stranger's shoes," Tai continued, "See, I think you were dying on the vine of this tight-ass party, because daddy's money can't buy you the one thing you really need."

"And what's that?"

"...the unexpected."

It took a few seconds for the woman to fully take in Tai's words. Once she did, she couldn't help but smile at the blind, wannabe lawyer. It was her first genuine smile at him the whole night. No longer was she mocking him or being amused by him, she was now genuinely intrigued and fascinated by him. And that was enough for her to give Tai a chance.

"Maybe you're not so dumb," she said, "Raven Branwen."

"Taiyang Xiao Long."

Raven reached over and grabbed her glass of tequila. In one gulp, she finished the rest of her drink. By how fast she drank it, one could assume she was trying to leave the bar as soon as possible. Raven then held out her hand for Taiyang to grab. "Let's go, Taiyang," she said, her tone going from uninterested to downright sultry. 

Just as eager as Raven was to leave the bar, Taiyang took her hand and let her lead the way. _Oh, this is gonna be one hell of a night. Sorry Li...there's no way in hell I'm passing an opportunity like this up._

**FIVE MINUTES LATER...**

Outside the bar, Raven Branwen helped lead Taiyang Xiao Long to an expensive looking sports car that was parked on the street. Although Tai didn't need the help, he still let her lead the way to maintain his cover as a blind man without special powers. He already knew they were going to a car, but he kept his mouth shut to avoid tipping Raven off. 

"On your left," Raven said as she hopped into the driver's seat and started the car. Taiyang then made his way to the shotgun seat. He also made sure to take the long way around just to further sell his blind man routine. 

**VROOOM! VROOOM!**

Taiyang couldn't help but laugh. That was Raven just showing off now. From the sound of the engine, he could tell this was some high-quality sports car, one that you usually wouldn't find on the streets of Vale. Tai took his seat next to Raven, excited to see where this night was headed. 

"Do you like it?" Raven asked. 

Tai nodded his head. "Sounds expensive," he replied as he felt the leather in the car. 

"You have good ears."

"Is it yours?"

"It is...until we get caught."

Normally, that would freak Tai out. In this instance, it just further increased his love for this woman. _Mmm_ _mm...bad girl. I love bad girls._

Raven Branwen then turned and drove into the street. After making sure the street was clear, she floored it, off to continue her date with Tai. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The following segments are based on:
> 
> 8\. Spider-Man (2002)  
> 9\. Iron Man 2 (2010)  
> 10\. Wonder Woman (2017)  
> 11\. Stranger Things (season 1, episode 8)  
> 12\. Daredevil (season 2, episode 5)
> 
> AN1: Happy belated Valentine's Day, everyone. Like I said in the previous chapter, law school has been a pain in the ass. It's hard to just sit down and dedicate time to writing these chapters, especially the lengthy ones. Anyways, I managed to finish the special. Now, back to the movies!

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [Amazing Rap Skirmishes of Fiction: Daisy Johnson vs. Ruby Rose (RWBY)](https://archiveofourown.org/works/28655241) by [wordwarrior (regachoisiah)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/regachoisiah/pseuds/wordwarrior)




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